


Swim With Me? [klance au]

by MonsieurDandylionMethod



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender, Voltron: Lion Voltron, Voltron: Vehicle Voltron, vld - Fandom
Genre: Altean Lance (Voltron), Asexual Pidge | Katie Holt, Bilingual Lance (Voltron), Bisexual Character, Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Bisexual Male Character, Bottom Keith (Voltron), Cuban Lance (Voltron), Domestic Fluff, Eventual Happy Ending, Eventual Keith/Lance (Voltron), Eventual Relationships, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/F, F/M, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, Gay, Gay Keith (Voltron), Genderfluid Pidge | Katie Holt, Hawaiian Hunk (Voltron), How Do I Tag, Hunk & Lance (Voltron) Friendship, Hunk (Voltron) is a Good Friend, Hunk (Voltron) is so Pure, I Blame Tumblr, I Don't Even Know, I Ship It, I Tried, I Will Go Down With This Ship, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Keith (Voltron) is a Mess, Keith/Lance (Voltron) Angst, Lance (Voltron) Angst, Lance (Voltron) is a Mess, M/M, Mer!Lance, Minor Allura/Shiro (Voltron), Minor Hunk/Shay (Voltron), Ocean, Pining Lance (Voltron), Plot Twists, Protective Shiro (Voltron), Romantic Fluff, Top Lance (Voltron), What Have I Done, Work In Progress, i love putting too many tags, idk if im making this shatt or shallura yet, its gonna happen trust me, klance, maybe smut, mermaid, mermaid au, okay no more tags, one of them is gonna happen idfk, some mermaid shit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-16
Updated: 2018-08-09
Packaged: 2019-03-19 06:54:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 37
Words: 70,650
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13699206
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MonsieurDandylionMethod/pseuds/MonsieurDandylionMethod
Summary: Lance as a flirtatious, beautiful mermaid that gets a bit too close to humans; Keith as a college student with an art major who loves to surf. Classic enemies-to-friends-to-lovers (with a few plot twists), fluffy Klance AU





	1. First Sight

Scales shifted in the cold water, anxious to escape to open ocean. Dim sunlight flowed down through the opening in the top of the massive cave, settling on the floor where rows of students sat, hair floating around their heads, gills pulsing slowly as they looked up to the podium in the front of the classroom.

Lance flicked his tail in annoyance. He was bored out of his mind listening to his teacher go on and on about  _responsibility_  and  _obligations_. It wasn't the teacher, she was fine and he kind of felt bad for her, but he'd rather be somewhere else. What he'd give to be outside right now, flipping through the currents, which were warm today, racing towards shore where the rocks could hide him as he watched the humans from a distance. It was the beginning of summertime, tourist time, the season of surfers and girls in bikinis. He'd just gotten back from Spring vacation, which he'd spent with Allura and Hunk down near Costa Rica to visit Lance's extended family, but now they were back to California with its hot sun and Americans that liked to flaunt and were easily seduced.

Lounging on the coral seat, arms slumped over his desk, Lance looked up at the teacher at the front of the class, swishing around as she spoke, hands fluttering around her sides as she tried to contain her excitement. "It's your last year of school, students. You're almost ready to go out there, buy your first cove, and start working as a member of our society. You graduate right before we migrate, so we only have a few months left!". This was the end of her spiel, only a few more minutes until Lance could rocket out of the classroom. He  _was_  the fastest swimmer in his class, after all. Urging the sun to pass across the hole in the ceiling, Lance slowly started packing up his satchel.

Comb, a few spare earrings, scale tape, notebook in a ziplock bag, chapstick tube, a small conch shell, and his swim trunks, which were rolled up tightly and tied with rope to keep secure... everything was right in place. Lance watched his teacher glance up at the opening of the rock and he grinned to himself as she sighed and clasped her hands in front of her. "Well, I'll see you all on Monday. Have a good weekend!" Lance was the first out of the door, powering his tail through before his teacher could finish what she was saying.

 _There we go, finally_. Lance darted through the complex of caves that made up the school campus, turning left at the kelp patch just outside of his history teacher's cave, then right at the bright pink coral patch before finally escaping the campus. He looked over his shoulder and watched for a few seconds as the other mers escaped out of their classes, tails sparkling and fluorescent markings on their arms and faces lighting up as they found their friends.

The underwater civilization was built so deep down that the brilliant sun was muted to a grimy, filtered glow above, but the waters weren't so deep that they were freezing. Lance pulsed on his fluorescent lights and, with a resigned sigh of bubbles, dove down deeper to the residential area. As much as he'd like to race up to the sun, it would have to wait for a few more minutes as he plummeted down to the neighborhood.

The school was built up much higher than the housing coves because it was completely naturally made, so even if someone  _did_  discover the caves, they'd just think it was some weird rock formations. However, the mers had built their own homes that had been passed down for generations upon generations, and the mers' belongings and household items were definitely not naturally made. Lance shivered at the thought of what happened to the few scuba divers that had ventured down this far.

He grimaced at the thought as he passed the guards that protected the coves. Their huge arms with ropes of muscles running down them held giant tridents, pointed tips razor-sharp. Their broad tails stirred the water with powerful strokes, the hackles that lead from the mid-joint of their tails up to the curve of their spines raised, the thin webbing of skin that connected the spines grey and sinewy. Lance nodded to them as he passed through their dark eyes, shuddering at their grey scales.

As Lance passed the guards, his eyes adjusted to the darkness and he was able to make out the yellow lights of the tethered angler fish who provided light for each cove in the neighborhood. Everyone except the council members lived here, each family with their own cove. Lance flicked on all of his fluorescent lights, pulsing them lightly to let others know he wasn't a shark.

As he entered the complex, Lance began passing other mers with the same glowing patterns on their arms, necks, and faces. Most had satchels like him, varying in sizes. He knew the way home by heart, but outsiders would get lost in the maze of rocky crevasses.Sliding through the cold water with ease, pulling himself through the salty ocean, he was home within a few minutes.

The anglerfish by their opening was glowing, which meant Lance's mom, Elena, was home. "Hola, Mama!" Lance called as he slipped inside the cove. The rocky cave opening led into the living room; large flat rocks covered in soft green fronds of moss and algae, a rug of frilly kelp tendrils. The water in the cave was warmer, wrapping around Lance's scales with comfort.

Hanging his satchel to the rack that also held his mother's shawl and his father's briefcase, Lance inhaled deeply and tasted the flavor of something cooking through his gills. "Hola, mi amor!" Elena peeked her head out from the kitchen and smiled warmly. Her frame was large and full, the amber scales of her tail reaching up to cover her chest, unlike Lance's.

"I'm making clams for lunch, want to stay and eat with me?" Upon his sheepish smile, Elena sighed, placing her hands on her hips. "You're going to the surface again, mi hijo?" Young mers were encouraged to go up to the surface, getting their sun time, as long as they kept out of sight. As soon as they touched open air, their tails disappeared, leaving them with legs, but if they were fully submerged, their tails would come back within seconds.

Considering it was such a quick shift the punishment for exposing your tail was banishment for the mer and death for the human that was exposed. Lance's uncle, Frederico, had been subject to that punishment when he had shown his tail to his human girlfriend. Frederico was sent to Hawaii to a large community of mers off the coast of the volcanic islands and his lover... Lance had never seen her lounging by the beach again. It was brutal, but the way it had to be, Lance guessed. He knew that he never wanted to be the cause of the loss of a human's life, that's why he was so careful when he went to the surface, always keeping his head above no matter what.

Lance had learned his lesson from his uncle, watching his father curse the council, then humans, then his own brother for being so stupid. As interested in humans as Lance was, as much as he flirted and flaunted, he'd never even dream of the possibility of exposing his secret. Besides, changing to legs kind of hurt anyways, a burning feeling in your thighs and inner calves and a sticky veil of nausea over your stomach.

On a happier note, the community wasn't all just death and punishment. The warm air around Lance reminded him of his love for the ingenious architecture of the neighborhood. The reason the water was heated was because the coves were situated on a rift in the Earth's tectonic plates where water was warmed by the hot currents swirling up from the chasm. The 'oven' was customary in each cove, a large hole in the floor that had boiling water bubbling up from it, the effect of holes drilled deeper into the rift. When Elena wasn't cooking with it, she shoved a giant slate of rock over the hole's surface that blocked the boiling bubbles, making the kitchen no longer hazardous.

Lance's two younger siblings, Sebastian and Carmen, who were twins at seven years old, were off at their own primary school. Lance knew that they'd be home soon, maybe an hour. They weren't allowed to swim home on their own until they were 11, so Lance's father, Carlos, would pick them up from school and swim home with them. Lance would have to be home soon after, as his mother didn't like it when he was late. He had work to do, chores for the community like weaving baskets and sewing satchels and collecting trash. He'd meet up with Hunk and Allura later to do them.

The community that Lance and his family lived in was pretty large compared to most groups of mers, who stayed in small packs and moved often to avoid discovery. The community held several dozens of families so they ended up staying in each location for 10 years. Lance had moved here when he was 12, and had moved once more when he was 2. He was 19 now, so they'd be moving again in 3 years. Lance's last home had been larger and he had friends because they were located at a popular current intersection where groups often came to rest for a few months, but it wasn't warm like California and they weren't close to the shore so Lance had never seen a human until they moved to their current home.

Lance let his mind wander through this as he helped his mother with the clams for a while, then snapped out of his daze and kissed her on the cheek, grabbed his satchel, and rocketed outside.

 _Up, up, up_.

...

The sound of Keith's car trunk closing was satisfying.  _Thunk_. Holding his surfboard under his arm, he threw the keys of his Jeep into his bag, then jogged down to the crowded beach. It was late afternoon and the hot sun beat down on Keith's freckled shoulders and dark hair. People were everywhere, but the ocean wasn't as crowded as Keith had thought it would be, which was a relief. He smiled to himself at the giant waves that threw themselves into the air, then crashing down on the wet sand with a boom. The blue crescents arched over the heads of the swimmers, who screamed gleefully.

Keith looked to the far left of the beach and spotted another few surfers riding waves, but other than that, there was no one with a 7'2" board and a wetsuit on this side of the beach. Kicking off his flip-flops at the end of the boardwalk, Keith weaved through beach-goers on towels and chairs, girls with skin so bronze from tanning they looked like mahogany statues, men with chiseled chests and fuckboy haircuts, they all made Keith want to roll his eyes. He set his bag and towel midway down the beach and began pulling on his black wetsuit, squeezing into the black fabric that was probably more expensive than his laptop.

Keith had been surfing since he was little; it came naturally to him, just like his artwork. He wasn't good at many things, but painting and surfing were probably his most skilled hobbies. He was an art major at the local college, living on-campus with his friend Shiro, a senior who was looking to go to flight school after college. Keith was a sophomore at 19 and worked at one of the many Starbucks in his California college town. When he wasn't at school or working, he was at the beach, surfing and sketching. He'd seen countless sunsets, gotten up early for so many sunrises, but the sky never ceased to amaze him. California was pretty much amazing compared to his hometown in Texas, even though Keith's dad was there and he was pretty amazing too.

On the far right of the beach, rocky crags black with algae stood up to the waves that slammed into them. There was a buoy in the water in front of them that showed where the rocks started. The jagged rocks were sharp and unforgiving, and Keith had watched a little kid's boogie board get mauled by the knife-like features, and he made sure to steer as far away as possible from them whenever he caught a wave.

After velcroing the strap to his ankle, Keith picked up his board and waded into the waves, moving fast once he was a close enough so he wouldn't get pummeled. The water was cold on his face and hands, but his wetsuit kept him insulated so it wasn't that bad. Soon, he'd passed the line of the wave's breaks and he hopped up onto his board, straddling it to paddle further out.

Keith eventually found his way to a large, flat rock that protruded out of the water, far enough back from the shore that the water was calm, only gently sloshing up against the rock. He usually came here to stretch before actually surfing, looping the leash of his board to a piece of driftwood wedged into a gap in the rock, standing on the flat, grey boulder, and soaking up the sun as he stretched out his muscles. Today was no different. After securing his board, Keith climbed up onto the rock and sighed, sitting down on the hard surface that was comfortably warmed by the sun. Stretching his legs, he gazed up at the cloudless sky, watching the seagulls dart around each other and float on the seabreeze.

...

Lance was swimming so fast he felt like he could fly. Up and up and up, he closed his eyes for a brief second as he felt the sun grow warm on his face. As he grew closer and closer to the surface, his scales began to gleam the way they were supposed to, bright blue. As he entered the currents, his sail lifted: the long spines on the back of his tail that started at his mid-back, ending at the midjoint just like the guard's and every other mer's on the California coast. Lance had once met a mer from the east coast, native to freezing water and stronger currents, and his sail had been at least two times bigger than Lance's because of how aggressive the currents could get in the east. Lance's wasn't just for decoration though, the sails really did help to steer and use for balance. Plus, the thin webbing of skin that connected the spines had luminescent stripes, adding to markings that identified mers from predators.

Lance also had stripes on his cheekbones, collarbone, and shoulders, as well as a few freckled spots on his hands and the bottom of his ribcage. His eyes were only a few shades darker blue than his tail, and were a key to his flirting. Beneath his ears, near the sterno muscle in his neck, were his gills, three on either side. Delicate and fluttery, the change between filtering soft, clear water and breathing sharp, dry air with his small lungs was hard and often the reason why some mers passed out on their first few times changing. Lance didn't particularly like breathing, air but it was worth it, even if he did have trouble catching his breath sometimes.

Letting the currents carry him close to the beach, Lance searched for a spot in the ocean floor, which was now soft and sandy, to store his satchel. Swimming with a weird brown bag around your chest was a little weird, especially when encountering strangers. Lance ended up wedging it in the base of a large boulder that stood fairly far from the beach, but not before grabbing his swim trunks to change into. As evolved as the mers were, they didn't transform into magically wearing pants, and if you tried to turn back into a mer with clothes on, the fabric would get mutilated by the expanding scales.

Lance decided that the boulder was a good place as any to change, so he slowly surfaced, wincing as he felt his tail split down the middle, morphing into legs with a painful burn. His gills closed over, all of his markings faded away into tan freckles, and his webbed fingers split to become 'normal', long and slim without their membrane of webbing.

He slipped on his swim trunks and was about to pull himself onto the boulder when he noticed that there was a  _freaking surfboard tied to the boulder_. It took all of Lance's willpower to not duck down underwater again and rocket right back to the cove. Breathing deeply (which was hard- his lungs were very small), Lance gave himself a quick peptalk to relax, then slowly gripped the top of the rock and pulled himself up so he could look over the edge. He flinched when he saw a tuft of black hair, but remained in the weird pull-up position until he actually recognized who the surfer was.

Oh! HIM! Hottie with a body, holy shit. Lance knew this surfer. He knew basically all of the regulars because he watched them surf so often, and man was this guy a regular. Almost every time Lance came to visit, the guy was there, surfing or just sitting on his board out in the open. It occurred to Lance that, since he'd never changed at this rock, it was probably a regular spot for the surfer guy and he was just minding his own business, sunbathing. Lance slowly lowered himself back down into the water to let his arms rest, but then slowly made his way around the side of the rock, eventually finding a place where the rock was low enough that Lance could climb on. What, he was interested!

Lance hopped onto the rock, still a little shaky from his new legs, and stood over the boy, who lay on his stomach, arms folded under his head and wetsuit stripped off to lay in the sun on the side. Lance cleared his throat, then said loudly, "Hey, cutie." The boy jumped a little, but rolled onto his back slowly, wincing at the bright sun. Lance shifted to the side to have his back block the sun from getting into the surfer's eyes. His face unpinched itself and he regarded Lance slowly. "Do you have a sunburn? Or are you always this hot?"  _Lance, you're a dumbass, that's the cheesiest pick-up line you and Allura have ever come up with, you couldn't have gone with anything a little more subtle?_

The surfer shook a little, probably a scoff, but Lance stayed confident. Finally, the boy replied, but it wasn't the answer Lance was looking for.

"Sorry, I don't swing that way." His dark hair slicked back, dark grey eyes piercing and pretty, he  _looked_  hot as fuck, at least to Lance and probably every other being alive, mer or human, but maybe he was straight after all. Lance stared at the surfer as he casually flipped onto his stomach, closing his eyes lazily.  _What the fuck? Weren't humans supposed to be easy to get?_ Certainly, all the girls Lance had flirted with had been willing to indulge Lance in his giant ego, even some of the boys he'd tried with but maybe this one was just an asshole. Or, maybe Lance had lost his charm over the winter... Nah, that couldn't be it. 

Whatever. Lance rolled his eyes, huffed loudly, then jumped back into the ocean, making his way to shore to find someone who actually appreciated his efforts. Who needed a hot surfer guy? Lance was bi, he could choose any other fish in the sea. Just not the hot emo surfer one. 


	2. Work

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> lance working, keith working, hello hunk, allura, and shiro

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3vB6fzH0EsM  
> ^insp. song to listen to if u want~

 

"Alright girls, Lancey-Lance has gotta go back in. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" The girls giggled, waved to him, and Lance eased back into the cold ocean water, keeping his head above the water until he was safely behind the rock platform that the surfer hottie had been laying on before. Thankfully, he'd left and Lance was able to change back to mer in peace.

It was getting late- he could tell by how the sun was nearly kissing the ocean, so he strapped his satchel on quickly, flicking into a current to get back home quicker. He'd meet up with Allura and Hunk for their chore for the day, then go back home for dinner. Same old, same old.

Of course, Lance loved his friends. Allura, the daughter of the head committee member, Alfor, was treated with high respect in the community. Because of her father, who held the highest status in the committee, she didn't have normal classes like Hunk and Lance. She instead had leadership and government classes taught by her tutor, Coran. One day, she would lead the committee. She was gorgeous, and caught the eye of nearly every merman she passed with her brown skin and white hair, but to Lance, she was only a friend.

Hunk was the sweetest boy imaginable and he came from a tribe off the coast of the islands of Samoa. He had black tribal tattoos inked into the brown skin of his shoulders and back. His hair was normally tied back with an orange ribbon he found on the coast- he'd liked it because it matched the color of his tail near perfectly. He was an excellent cook, and he hoped to open up his own in the human world.

That was a small chance though. It  _was_  possible to get permanently turned into a human, but the selection for such a gift was so slight that Hunk's hopes were low. Each year, those who wanted to apply to become a full-time human had to fill out a long test, judging both an understanding of the human world, one's morals, and their academic skills.

The committee then selected three mers who had taken the tests that they saw fit to become humans and they sent them to the Dark Kingdom, where all things disturbing and cruel lived. There, they met an evil sea wizard that changed them into humans permanently. That's what Lance had heard anyways. His grandmother had tried to become a human for 17 years before she met her husband, Lance's grandfather, and stopped trying.

Lance had no desire, only curiosity, of such a thing. He liked being a merman! He wouldn't want to throw away his tail, but he thought that Hunk deserved it since he worked so hard on his meals. He'd thought about the whole process before and decided that it wasn't worth it.

In minutes, Lance was down to the neighborhood again. Instead of heading deeper into the residential coves, he veered left, past the school campus, and darted to the community center. The entrance was easy to miss, but Lance was here every day, no matter how much he hated chores. The opening to the cave was small, just a hole in the wall, and Lance wiggles through it without much trouble. Sometimes Hunk, embarrassed, requested to leave last because it took him a while to squeeze through the small hole. The center wasn't even really a center, just a natural cave that held the chores supplies and schedules for the community. About 20 mers could fit in it comfortably, but there were only a few present, shelling clams or making nets.

Lance smiled when he saw said merman talking to Shay, the coordinator. She was young, maybe a few years older than Lance, but after her mother had died, the previous coordinator, she had taken on the job and was doing an excellent job of it. She was pointing to the wall behind her, which had a giant schedule etched with a pick onto its surface. It showed the day with a list of the chores needed to be done under it. Some had been crossed out with a spray of ink, but the group's normal chore, weaving baskets, was still available.

Lance swam down to Hunk and nudged him with his shoulder, smiling hello. "Oh, hey Lance! I was just gonna ask Shay if we could take baskets for the day."

"You bet," Shay said happily, handing Hunk the roll of twine and several bundles of long, thin sticks. There had always been some kind of spark between Shay and Hunk, but Lance was never able to convince his best friend to make a move towards the girl, despite how much Hunk adored her.

"Thanks, Shay, see you soon!" Shay waved, her greyish green tail fluttering lightly. Hunk rocketed through the opening in the cave to spare himself the embarrassment of getting stuck in front of Shay. Lance followed quickly.

"Hunk! You  _lovebird._ You  _lovesick fish_. Ugh, just ask her  _out_ already, I swear to  _Alfor_ , if you don't  _I will for you_." Hunk blushed profusely, dark pink showing through his cheeks as he swam. They were headed towards their secret cove which the three of them had discovered a year after they'd first moved here. It was cliche but nice at the same time, to have a place just for the three of them. Like the community center, it was a hole in the giant rock formation, a small opening that led into a larger cove. Over the years, the three had furnished it, spreading moss and kelp rugs over the rocky floor, growing coral around the walls, sticking sea stars and urchins to the walls. Even some fish darted here and there. 

Allura was already inside when Hunk and Lance arrived, sprawled over a rock slab that served as a chair. Lance had always loved her tail. Because of her royal lineage, her tail didn't have hackles like Lance or Hunk's. It had disappeared because her mother came from an island community where the currents weren't strong at all, so they had no use for intense steering. Although Allura had some trouble swimming when the riptide was strong, her tail was still amazingly powerful and impressive- deep blue with flowy, translucent fins. Beaded pearl necklaces and bracelets adorned her arms and neck, and a swath of scales covered her chest too. Her top scales would eventually merge with her tail, forming one long sheen, but until mermaids were in their thirties, their tops and tails stayed separate, so for now, Allura's smooth, muscled stomach stayed exposed.

"Lance! Hunk!" Her accent, from her mother, made Lance's name come out as  _Lonce,_ but said mer didn't mind, it was actually pretty cool. She flipped off the rock and took the bundle of sticks from Hunk, settling on the floor, tail tucked under her. Hunk and Lance sat down in an odd triangle with her, and they began working.

For the next hour and a half, they wove wooden strands into strong baskets, used to collect rocks, oysters and clams, and other supplies. Their fingers worked quickly, but the often paused to burst out laughing at something one of them had said. They teased each other and gossiped, and Lance felt breathless from giggling and his cheeks sore from smiling after only minutes.

"Wait, Lance, have you  _seen_  a human up there with black hair and a white stripe? Like a skunk sort of?" Allura gazed at Lance intensely, blue eyes wide. She visited the surface every week, even though her father discouraged it. He was overly protective, which annoyed Allura, but she  _was_  the heir of the community so Lance understood. He immediately recognized who Allura was talking about.

"Broad shoulders? Always walking with a dude with a mullet?" Allura nodded enthusiastically. "Funny story..." Lance said sheepishly, and Hunk leaned forward.

"Lance, what'd you do this time?" Hunk said, leaning back.

Lance put down his finished basket and started slowly on a new one. "Well... I've been watching that mullet guy for a while now... and today he was just sunbathing out on a rock. And I went up to him and was like 'hey' and he basically ignored me. Who does that? I was just being nice... and he turned out to be a total dickwad. But Allura, I'm sure his friend is nicer. Try out a fling!" It wasn't unnatural for mers to be gay, bi, pan, ace, whatever floated their boat. Lance himself was bi, but he was pretty sure Hunk and Allura were both straight.

"Lance..." Allura said sympathetically. Lance shrugged.

"It's his loss! Lancey-Lance will always be able to find adoring humans! I don't need validation from hot mullet men!" Hunk laughed, and they continued their conversation, soft currents rippling through their fins as they worked.

...

The coffee shop was cool and dry as Keith stepped in from the summer air. His hair was still a little damp from the shower he took at his dorm before coming to work so it was pretty messy, but he was able to cover it up with the mandatory black visor. He slipped behind the counter and into the back room, waving hello to his coworkers. Surfing today had been fun, but he was on the night shift now which sucked.

Normally, Keith loved working at Starbucks. He knew that it wasn't the best job, it was actually pretty stressful, but he got perks and good coffee and was able to take home the pastries and sandwiches that weren't bought. He tied the apron loosely around his waist, then went back outside to serve on cashier duty.

_Grande caramel macchiato with caramel sauce on the top AND bottom._

_Tall vanilla latte and a croissant, please._

_Uhh... um... what's a flat white? Yeah. Okay, uh, I'll have that then. And a uhh... whatchamacallit. Sandwich. Panini, that's it. The tomato one._

_Hot coffee._

Keith flew through the orders easily, quick on his feet, smiling politely, writing names on cups and pastry bags. Drawing a wave on his wrist during his break at 5pm. It wasn't until 6 that he snapped out of his work mindset when Shiro walked in.

Keith wasn't really paying attention, too busy fiddling with the chip reader to look up. "Hello and welcome to Starbucks, what can I get you?"

"A will to live and a new eyeliner pen, thanks." Keith looked up, surprised, but his face quickly fell into a smile when he recognized his best friend. The eyeliner thing was a joke because Shiro's lashes were so damn thick it looked like he wore makeup.

"Hey bro, what're you doing here?" Keith nodded to his coworker and she took over his post, waving to Shiro while blushing profusely. Keith knew she had a massive crush on Shiro, and he kind of used it as an advantage to have her cover for him when Shiro visited. He slipped out from behind the counter and lead his best friend over to an empty table. A few students were working on laptops nearby, but they were off in their own worlds.

"Just thought I'd stop by. Now that graduation's over, are you heading back home? Or waiting until the end of the summer? We only have a few days before we're kicked out of the dorm." Shiro was an orphan and had been in a foster home after foster home for his whole life. His current "parents" turned out to be Keith's neighbors back in Texas, accepting Shiro into their large family when he was 8. The two had become fast friends and decided to go to the same college when they were both accepted. It was cliche, but Keith thought of Shiro as an older brother- always there for him.

As Keith was going to be a junior in the fall, and Shiro a senior, their graduation wasn't a big deal. Shiro's parents had come up, all proud and happy, but Keith's hadn't, which was expected. As much as they loved their son, they wanted to see him be independent. Keith figured it was because he was coddled as a kid since he was an only child. He didn't mind.

"Nah, we can move in with Matt and Pidge this weekend, since I'll probably go back home in August." The Holt family was a tech-genius group of four, but the parents were often away on radical missions at NASA, doing calculations and smart things like that. Their kids, Matt and Pidge (previously known as Katie) were just as smart, building robots that made breakfast, programming computers, and playing technologically-advanced pranks on each other (and sometimes Keith and Shiro). The four friends had known each other since freshmen year, and Shiro and Keith would be spending the summer with the siblings in their giant house on the ocean.

"That's good. I'll probably go back with you then." Shiro sighed, long and hard.

"Something on your mind?" Keith asked, concerned. He knew what it meant when Shiro's eyes got sad like that, but he needed Shiro to say it, not for Keith, but for himself. Just so he could understand how stupid it was.

"I'm single as fuck, Keith." It took a lot not to laugh. Instead, Keith rolled his eyes.

"Shiro, like I've told you a hundred billion times, literally anyone would go out with you. You're not single as fuck, you're just not committed to anyone so you push anyone who has any semblance of feelings for you away. I swear to god, just get a summer fling before I gauge my eyes out with a straw." To demonstrate, Keith took a paper-wrapped straw that lay on the table and threw it at Shiro. "Getta...  _seasonal relationship_."

Now it was Shiro's turn to roll his eyes. "I don't have commitment issues. I'm waiting for the special someone. And you can't judge me, you've never even been a relationship." For some reason, Keith's mind jumped to the guy who'd interrupted his sunbathing session. He didn't really see his face too well since it was so bright, but he'd seemed okay. Pretty cheesy, pretty stupidly romantic with his bad pickup line, but probably cute.

"Shiro, I don't even know what sexuality I am. How am I supposed to get a relationship if there's a possibility that I could wake up one day and think, 'Oh, I'm fucking gay.'"

Shiro quirked an eyebrow. "Are you gay?"

Keith threw his hands up, letting them fall loudly to his thighs. "I don't even know!"

Shiro laughed, deep and calm. Keith's female coworker, the one obsessed with Shiro, sighed dreamily, then flushed in embarrassment. Keith facepalmed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry this took so long guys!! I've been hella busy. I hope you like this chapter, more soon!<3


	3. Mi Hijo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ulaz n thace, daddy issues

"I'm home!" Lance called as he entered his family's cove. He placed his satchel on the rack and swam through the cove to the dining room, where people were talking loudly. As he entered, he immediately noticed the two mers out of place.

"Ulaz! Thace!" Lance bolted to their chairs and slung his arms around each of their shoulders. Thace chuckled warmly, ruffling Lance's hair.

"Hello, Lance. Long time no see, eh?" Lance grinned at him. Ulaz and Thace, husbands of the Northern clan up near the border of Canada and the States, were close friends of the family via connection to Lance's mom and the council, and they always had stories and laughs to share with the Mcclain cove. Lance thought of them as uncles, extended family, and admired their strong marriage despite original distaste from the elders of their community. Apparently, they were more strict up North.

"Ah, mi hijo, sit down, we can talk while we eat, por favor." Lance nodded at his mom as she came from the kitchen, holding long metal skewers with shrimp, fish, and other assorted food kebab-ed onto them.

"Hola, padre," Lance told his father as he passed to go back to his seat, and waved goofily to the twins who sat across the table.

"How's the surface, Lance?" Carlos responded, looking pointedly at his son. Lance knew his father's distaste for the human world after the incident with his brother, but that didn't disturb Lance's daily visits. Carlos was forever curious though as if  _wanting_ Lance to screw up somehow so that he could have an excuse to keep his son safe in the deep. Lance's relationship with his father was complex. They loved each other as a son and a father should, but Carlos had been distant, maybe colder, since his brother was exiled, and Lance's adventures only stressed him out more.

Added to the fact that, while Carlos supported Lance in almost every way possible, he came from a traditional family with traditional values, and bisexual wasn't necessarily one of them. So, as expected, the mer was on edge with Ulaz and Thace visiting. Lance didn't mind. He knew that whoever he chose to spend the rest of his life with, it would be his decision and not his father's.

As soon as they began eating, the twins launched into stories of their days, and Lance knew that once they had started, they wouldn't stop until the end of dinner, so he waited patiently until the end of dinner to talk with Ulaz and Thace. As the twins got ready for bed by an ushering mother, and Carlos disappeared into his room to unwind, Lance and Ulaz and Thace slipped out of the cove and swam up past the school to the coral coves, a large, open area where they could see from the light of the fleeting sunset and soon, the moon. Plus, some of the coral was bioluminescent, so they stuck by those patches in order to see better. Finding seats on the floor of the cove, they settle, Ulaz leaning up against Thace comfortably. Lance perched on a rock slab.

Since the last time that Lance had seen them, the husbands had pretty much stayed the same. Because of their hardcore warrior tribe, the Marmora, their tales had been dyed deep indigo with two fluorescent stripes that were a staple of the community. The two also had a strange tribal tattoo on their bulging biceps, symbolizing their high ranks. Even though they had their tails colored, their fins were still unique. While Ulaz's was feathery at the end, whispy even, Thace's was strong and sharp, a more classic fishtail look. Their spines were retracted for now, but their sales were larger than most, even if they weren't native to the rougher waters on the other side of the country. Apparently, they sharpened the spines and used them as blades in battle. Their deadly combat skills gave their tribe the name 'the blades of Marmora'.  _Badass as fuck_.

What was even more amazing about their appearances were their battle scars. The last sheath of webbing connecting Ulaz's last two spines was ripped raggedly, the result of a dangerous mer with fishhook nails. Ulaz also had a very thin waist with scars of lacerations down his ribs, the result of rapid weight and muscle loss when he was captured and kept captive when he was younger. Because of mermaid anatomy and the fact that his structure was still developing when he was jailed, it was hard to gain back weight after losing it- there weren't many fatty foods under the sea and being starved to near death was basically a death wish if a mer was to live in society- it was hard enough to find enough food to fuel their hard-working bodies, let alone catch up after a year in captivity. Under Ulaz's special circumstances, he'd been sent to live on land for several months to regain a better diet, consuming fatty foods one after the other until he was fit to return to a normal diet in the sea. His broad chest was strong though, and his frail torso didn't stop him from kicking ass in combat.

Thace was healthy, he'd been born in an elder's family so he'd been protected and given more food than he could eat as a child, just so that he'd be prepared to go to a special mer combat school by Russia in his teen years. When he returned, he was named second-in-command in the Marmora tribe, and for good reason too. Thace was not only incredibly intelligent and a stunning fighter, he had the stealth of a shadow and could easily intercept an enemy (such as the Dark Kingdom) as a spy. He'd gone on missions into the Dark Kingdom before but had never told Lance much because the Marmora were so secretive. He had a long, deep scar on his shoulder from a skirmish years ago, but he didn't really talk about that one either.

"Now, Lance..." Thace started, absent-mindedly rubbing Ulaz's bicep with the pad of his thumb, "How long has it actually been? More than 6 months, right? And I can only guess that you're still just as interested in our tribe, yes?"

Lance knew that it was impossible to become a Blade, and he didn't even think that he wanted to become such a fierce warrior, but the husbands' stories of their battles and liberation of captives in the Dark Kingdom still interested Lance. "Of course! What else? You'll have to tell me someday about it. I'm  _family_." Lance leaned back, clasping his hands together. He knew he was preaching to the choir, but there was always a chance that Thace would break.

It turned out that today was that day.

"That's true..." Thace mused, pretending to think to himself. Ulaz smiled at Lance, something rare, and Lance perked up enthusiastically. "I mean, you  _are_  old enough to know, no longer the tiny shrimp that you used to be..."

Lance pouted, offended, "Hey! I wasn't  _that_ small!" he huffed indignantly.

"Thace, stop torturing the poor boy. Go on, I know you're excited." Ulaz's voice was deep and gravely, the kind that you would expect to be giving orders or commanding things. Lance wondered what he was like in his tribe, his hard eyes drawn into focus.

"There isn't really much to tell, Lance. Just history and stuff."

"I don't mind," Lance replied, flicking his tail impatiently.

Thace started, rolling his eyes.

"If you draw a line from Argentina to South America, the Dark Kingdom is located right in the middle. The currents are so bad there that most mers instinctively avoid it. It's also at the bottom, on the floor of the ocean, so mers accustomed to low-pressure waters usually can't make it very far down before they can't handle the pressure. That's why our tribe's quarters are so far underwater, we have to train to withstand the pressure down there.

"The Dark Kingdom is run by a powerful Mer, Zarkon, and the witch that you always hear about that turns mers to humans? That's Zarkon's son, Lotor." Thace wrinkled his nose, "There's always been suspicion about Lotor. People say he's planning the downfall of his father and wants to bring rebel alliances into the Kingdom to decimate his father's ways. Everyone down there wants power, more and more, so they'll follow Zarkon anywhere as long as there's something in it for them.

"Zarkon's been more and more active recently, taking mers who swim alone and taking their luminescence." Thace lit up all of his patterns and motioned to the glowing spots. "Zarkon has discovered a way to harvest the luminescence in our markings, which he calls 'Quintessence'. It's extremely powerful, and the reason why he has some of the traits he does. He harvested so much that he's gotten poisoned."

"Too much is bad. 'Everything in moderation'." Ulaz added, pulsing the patterns on his cheeks.

"We believe that it's the reason he's ruled for so long, why he's so powerful. Zarkon's been ruling for decades upon decades, Lance." Thace shivered. "He used to be good, you know. He and Alfor used to be best friends. The Dark Kingdom wasn't always Dark." Lance's eyes widened. "But exposure to too much of this can make you forget your morals, forget the good side. Now Zarkon is as powerful as ever, and he's posing a real threat to the communities.

"We're gonna need a lotta mers to take his ass down, not to mention his witch of a wife, Haggar, and the rest of the Kingdom. That's why we're hopeful that Lotor is on our side. He's incredibly powerful and could be a serious ally with his inside information. The next mission Ulaz and I are going on is in two weeks. We're going to the Dark Kingdom to talk with Lotor." Thace finished, leaning back as Lance absorbed the information. Looking down at his hand, Lance turned on his luminescence, watching the glow of the constellation of blue sparks on his hands.  _This_  was what Zarkon wanted.

"Wait... I have more markings than most people," Lance said, remembering back to his primary school days when he was teased for having bolder, larger markings.

Ulaz nodded. "It's why you're the fastest in school Lance. It's why you can transform so easily. Zarkon is looking for mers like you, so please be careful." Lance had never really talked about his transformations, but Allura always complained about how tired she felt afterward, and Hunk got stomach aches if he changed back and forth too often.

"Wow... that's a lot," Lance said, swishing his hair out of his eyes.

"Sorry, too much? I should've toned it down-,"

"Nonono! You're fine, Thace. I'm glad I know. This just isn't the stuff I learn in history, you know? But now that I do, I wanna help. What can I do?" Lance said determinedly.

Ulaz frowned slightly. "Your tribe does not have an artillery. I suppose the best thing you could do was become a part of the council with Alfor."

Lance groaned, crossing his arms, "You both know that takes years, I want to be a part-"

"Lance! Shut up!" Thace was suddenly alert, stiff. Lance's sail flared up on instinct. Thace looked around, eyes searching. "Divers," he whispered. Lance froze.

"Thace, we have to-," Ulaz started, but then the searchlight of the humans was sweeping over the entrance of the cove.

"No time. Lance, get over here," Thace breather, and Lance darted over, terrified. If they were discovered, Lance's whole life would be uprooted. He'd have human's blood on his hands for letting himself be discovered, he'd be separated from his family and would be cast into a new community, scorned and alone. He forced himself to keep his luminescence off, even though it was an instinct to keep it on when he felt threatened. The three dove to the farthest corner of the cave and Thace spread his sail as far as it could go to cover them. As long as the humans didn't flash their lights at them, they'd remain undiscovered.

Lance was smushed between Ulaz and Thace, and he could feel Ulaz's heart beating where his hand lay on his uncle's sinewy chest. It fluttered, afraid, and Lance squeezed his eyes closed, body rigid. Dazedly, Lance thought about the rain. As soon as the storm came, rich fresh water would flood through the salt water and fill Lance's gills with oxygenated, clean water that tasted like clouds and allowed him to swim faster than ever, supplying his body with more oxygen than normal so his endurance skyrocketed. Lance's tail twitched at the thought.

They stayed like that for what seemed like hours, long after the lights of the humans had faded away.  _'Just to be safe',_ Lance thought to himself, but he was shaking so badly that he thought the humans could sense his fear from miles away. Never before had he been so terrified.

After an uncertain amount of time, Thace eased on the lights of his cheeks and uncurled his body from around Lance and Ulaz. He motioned for them to follow him, then darted out of the cove. They hugged the floor of the ocean as they caught a current, diving deep into the black ocean, not daring to turn on their bright stripes. Lance's eyes adjusted to the pitch black darkness, but as they approached the neighborhood, he couldn't see a single anglerfish lit outside the coves. This was worse than he thought. If the lights were all out, then the neighborhood had been put on lockdown due to the human threat. This wasn't a shark attack, it would be chaotic fighting if it were, this was the alarm that humans had come.

Thace zig-zagged through the caves, navigating expertly in the dark as he skimmed so close to the sand that his tail brushed the particles. Lance's feeling of dread settled down on him as they approached his family's cove- his parents were going to kill Thace, Ulaz, and  _then_  him.

He was pretty much right on point. As soon as Thace entered the cove, and unknown force slammed him into the back wall, pining him fairly well for about 2 seconds before Thace smacked the attackers tail aside and, in a flash of silver, drew his dagger, seething with anger. Lance smelled something as it filtered through his gills, and looked to Thace in horror to see that he was bleeding from where his upper back had been slammed into the rocky wall.

"No! Stop! It's only us!" Lance turned around and his mother was floating on the far side of the room, the twins under her arms protectively. They looked terrified, luminescence muted in fear. A mers first instinct upon a threat is to alert and defend, which was why their sails flared up and their markings pulsed. But when their fear overcame them, their scales literally darkened and their bright spots flicked out, trying to camouflage into the water. Some mers were even able to involuntarily lower their body temperature to avert the senses of sharks.

Lance looked back over to Thace. He now recognized his uncle's attacker as his own father. "Carlos, knock it off. ¿Donde esta tu cabeza? Calm down," Lance's mom hissed, and Carlos, breathing heavily, threw Thace off him and turned on Lance.

The anger in his eyes was crazed, signaling he'd been drinking. "You maggot! Do you have any idea how worried we were? Sneaking off like that?!"

Ulaz swam forward, voice low and gentle. "Carlos, it's not his fault. We were the ones to bring him out."

"Enough!" Carlos snapped at Ulaz, his tail stirring up the water beneath him. "I've had enough of this. Going up  _every day_ , what's wrong with you, huh? ¿Eres estúpido? ¿Quieres mueres?" Lance, stunned, stared at his father straight-on, watching his eyes that were so dark they were nearly black. Carlos only drank when he was distressed, and even this was more than usual. The combined events of Ulaz and Thace's arrival and the lockdown must've pushed him over the edge.

"Papa-" he started, lighting the friendly marks on his cheeks to illuminate his eyes.

"Don't ' _Papa_ ' me, Lance," Carlos snarled, and Lance felt a deep shooting pain of hurt ram through his heart.

"Carlos, that's enough. The twins are here! Think about what you're saying. Lance didn't do anyth-" Elena started, pushing the twins towards their bedroom.

"'Lance didn't do anything', my ass! Time and time again you've had close calls."

"What?! No I haven't!" Lance fumed, glaring at his father.

"Listen to me, hijo. I will  _not_  lose you like I lost Frederico. From now on, you're not allowed to the surface. I forbid it, do you hear me?"

Lance was still for only seconds, taking a few precious moments to think about his choices before turning tail and rocketing outside.


	4. Rocks and Found

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> lance meet keith

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/n: Hey guys, I'm making a slight change with the mers: to change into a human they have to be fully unsubmerged from water, not just by touching air. To turn back, they have to be fully resubmerged for at least five seconds. I'll be going back to change chapter 1 to fit that~ Hope you like these quick updates, I felt bad for not getting chapter 2 out in a week so I've been trying to really get the plot moving. Love ya 

Above him, the waves were crashing on the rocks. Lance could hear the storm raging above him, and it helped to drown out the calls of Ulaz, Thace, and his father. The first two called with caring voices, reaching out, but his father's voice was a threat. Lance sat, huddled in the secret cove, only this time it didn't provide him laughter and smiles and warmth, only the silky kelp stroking his scales and providing him a hiding place.

The calls of his family had ended what Lance could only estimate half an hour ago was, but he stayed still anyways. What was he supposed to do? Go home and never be able to go to the surface again? His father would ground him, of that he was sure, and Ulaz and Thace would be sent back to their tribe nonetheless. Carlos was probably furious with them. Lance didn't care. Maybe he'd escape to the Marmora tribe, become a warrior and kick ass. That option was crossed off, though- as much as Ulaz and Thace loved Lance, no doubt they'd tell his mother he was with them.

Another option was hiding on shore, but that was more dangerous than Lance was ready for. The only other option that he could think of was staying with Hunk (Allura's dad would turn him in to his family on sight) but even that was a stretch- his mom would get beyond anxious and his father would only get angrier the longer he stayed away. However, there was no chance of Lance going home tonight, not with his father still drunk, so Hunk's was the best option. And hey, Hunk was good at giving advice. He'd know what to do, even if his huge heart sometimes clouded his sound judgment. Lance smiled a little as he could already hear Hunk saying, "Just swim on in and give your dad a hug and some boiled clams. He'll have no chance but to forgive you!".

Lance knew the way to Hunk's, and he'd have to do a lot of groveling for waking them up so late anyway, so he unfurled his tail from underneath him and poked out of the cove, looking around for the luminescent glows of other mers. The storm above him was loud and full of thunder, and he could already feel the fresh water soaking through his skin, clean and oxygenated.

After securing the clear coast, Lance swam out, but immediately regretted it. The currents were wild and ragged, pulling him in every direction. He was immediately thrown against the rocks and he shrieked in pain, ricocheting off before he was able to stabilize himself. He flared his sail, trying to regain balance, but he was hurled upwards, smashing off the rocks again and feeling a flash of white-hot pain down the side of his tail. He struggled desperately against the currents, flashing his luminescence spastically, trying to get someone's- anyone's- attention.

Aware that he was being carried towards shore with the ocean's giant, crashing waves, Lance scrambled for hand-holds on the rocks beneath him, but he was torn loose. Hyperventilating, he tasted his blood through his gills, but it was too dark and frantic to see the actual wound. Instead, Lance curled into a ball, retracting his sail in to protect it, and squeezed his eyes closed, arms crossed over his chest. Soon enough, the stabbing rocks transformed into sand under Lance, and his limp body was slammed into its grainy floor over and over again. The only thing he could do was continue to breathe.

Lance didn't realize he was being washed ashore until he felt the pain of his tail splitting. Exhausted and struggling to hold his breath, Lance dragged himself onshore, clawing the sand with bleeding hands. " _You can't be up here! You have to go back into the ocean! You're not safe_!" His conscience screamed at him, but as he woozily looked back at the vicious waves, he knew that he might not even survive going back in. Disoriented and dizzy with pain, Lance dragged himself to a cluster of rocks a few meters away that stuck 4 or 5 feet out of the sand, tucking himself into a nook in their spaces, and promptly passed out.   
...  
"Shiro, I swear to god, this is the last day in our dorm room, and you're not even letting me sleep in? It's-" Keith squinted at his clock, "5 in the morning! On a weekend! Why am I friends with you?! I revoke our friendship, go away."

"Sorry bud, I only heard 'weekend' and 'friendship'. Get up or I'm pouring my coffee on you. Don't question my motives, I've always wanted to when you're lazy like this."

"WANTING TO SLEEP UNTIL 7 IS NOT BEING LAZY!" Keith shrieked, but dragged himself out of bed anyway, moping around as he got ready. "Towel," Keith muttered, packing it in his bag, "Sketches. Pencil. Water. First Aid." He frowned. Wetsuit? "Honey?"

Shiro responded easily, "What?" They did this almost every time one of them lost something and had every word perfected. They'd seen The Incredibles together and had kept it a tradition to watch it every year on Shiro's birthday since. Learning to recite this scene was just one part of how weird their bond was.

"Where's my supersuit?" Keith grumbled, searching through the laundry basket for the black fabric.

Shiro was making eggs, complete with an unironic pink apron his mom gave him. "What?" He added cheese to the scrambled gooey goodness.

"Where?" Keith looked under his bed. "Is? My? Super? Suit?"

Shiro was grinding salt and pepper into the eggs, getting paper plates out of the drawers. They had their own little camping stove, only two burners, and usually made breakfast in the morning on it to save time. "I, uh, put it away," Shiro replied.

Keith picked through the pile of laundry on the floor they had yet to do. "Where?" He asked, exasperated. He didn't expect Shiro to actually know where his wetsuit was, let alone disrupt their script recital, but it helped him think of places he could've put it.

"Why do you need to know?" Shiro poured orange juice into glasses and placed them on the bar counter. The counter was possibly Keith's favorite thing about the dorm, they had a nice little table-that-wasn't-a-table/counter with tall stools seated next to it and no clunky foldout table like some of the other dorms had.

"I need it!" Keith looked in the bathroom, checking his reflection and putting on deodorant while he was at it. He was already in his swim trunks.

Shiro plated the eggs, and sliced some avocado slices over them, ever the aesthetic guru. "Uh-uh! Don't you think about running off doing no derring-do. We've been planning this dinner for two months!" That was Shiro's favorite part to say. He was grinning.

Keith pulled a sweatshirt out of his dresser and whipped it over his head, all the while calling back, "The public is in danger!"

His roommate scrubbed at the pan at the sink, bubbles rising over his hands as he washed the leftover egg off the metal. "My evening's in danger!"

Keith fussed with his hair, then walked over to the coffee pot and poured himself a mug of steaming black bean juice, smelling it and immediately feeling more awake. "You tell me where my suit is, woman! We are talking about the greater good!"

Shiro packed away the camping stove and grabbed forks, settling down at the bar in front of his plate. "Greater good? I am your wife! I'm the greatest good you are ever gonna get!" Keith suddenly rushed into the bathroom and smacked his forehead with his palm, rolling his eyes as he lifted his wetsuit off the hook on the back of the bathroom door, marching into the kitchen.

"Found it!"

...

Keith yawned, stretching. He squished his toes in the wet sand and wrinkled his nose. He kind of hated when there were rainstorms at night, as much as he loved the rain, it made the sand feel squishy and gross. Shiro was tying his Nike's- how he ran on this shit, Keith would never know. He loved to surf, but kind of sucked at running.

The sun was just beginning to rise, bathing the beach in red, pink, and orange. Keith smoothed back his hair, looking out over the ocean. The waves were calm now, but he had no doubt that they'd been wild the night before in the thunderstorm. He'd been down here before when a storm had hit- waves twice as big as usual, but grey and angry and crashing with enough force to toss someone around like a doll. He'd probably just sit out on the water on his surfboard and sketch since there weren't any waves.

"Meet back here in an hour and a half? We gotta get back to the apartment by 8 to start packing- oh, shit." Shiro's head jerked to the side, eyes focused on a swatch of rocks by the shore.

Keith looked to where Shiro was and his eyes widened. "C'mon," he muttered, then jogged towards the rocks. A person's body, hidden between the jutting stones, lay on the sand, and upon a closer look, they were bleeding. "Shit, Shiro. Help me pull him out."

Shiro bit his lip. "What if he's dead?" He whispered. Keith rolled his eyes and grabbed hold of the person's wrist, gently pulling him out from the rocks. The person turned out to be a boy, and the boy turned out to be bleeding from a large gash traveling from his hip to his thigh. What's more, he was butt naked and seemed unconscious.

Shiro started stuttering. "Oh, shit, Keith we have to take him to a hospital, we gotta get him some help, what if he's-"

"He's not dead, dumbass, look, he's breathing." Keith knelt next to the guy, maybe his age, and brushed some sand off his chest. The guy's breath came in short, ragged breaths, and his hair was messy and sandy. He was really banged up, bruised everywhere. "Do you think he was in the water when the storm struck?" Shiro shrugged.

"Hospital," he replied.

The dude apparently didn't like that. "Ugh," he groaned, stirring. He brought his hands up to his eyes and rubbed them, then looked up at Keith, still hovering over him. "Woah," he murmured, and Keith froze for a second. Blue eyes, wide and curious, glowed in the sunrise as they looked up at Keith, and he found himself looking away, slightly embarrassed.

"Hospital," Shiro said again, like a six-year-old saying 'bathroom'. He was even hopping from one foot to the other.

Blue Eyes sat up, then groaned again, looking down at the bleeding wound in his side. "Nuh-uh," he slurred, "No hospital."

"Yeah, man. Did you get caught in the waves or something? You need help."

Blue Eyes slapped the wet sand, also alike to a six-year-old throwing a fit. "No hospital." He leaned towards Keith, wincing, "Please," he whispered. "Just a... tub. Some water."

"Keith, this guy's nuts," Shiro said, but scooped Blue Eyes up in his arms, cradling him to his chest with distaste.

"Woah times 2," Blue Eyes cooed, looking up at Shiro. His wound had reopened, and Shiro's arm was trickling with blood.

"God, I hope you don't have HIV or anything," Shiro grumbled.

...

Blue Eyes had been in the bath for an hour and a half so far and hadn't said a word. "Maybe he died," was Shiro's guess. The boy had bled all over their towels, but Keith didn't really know what to think about him not wanting to go to the hospital. He and Shiro had spent their time packing up what was left in the apartment, loading the bags and boxes into Shiro's Jeep, and seeing who could make a better smoothie out of the ingredients in the fridge.

Keith made a pretty good kale-mango-spinach-honey smoothie, but of course, Shiro took the cake with some sort of pink, strawberry-raspberry-mint milkshake, topped with cool-whip that they always kept in the freezer and a leaf from outside that was supposed to be a garnish.

Keith was now slumped at the counter, head rested on his hands. "I should go in," he said to Shiro, who sat next to him. Shiro nodded. Keith could tell he wasn't exactly all for having a stranger in his dormroom-that-wasn't-really-his-dorm-room-anymore-because-they-got-kicked-out-today, but he begrudgingly accepted it. "I'll be right back. Hope he's not dead."

Keith padded over to the bathroom and tapped on the door lightly. "Bud, you okay?" He called. No answer. Shrugging, Keith put his hand on the doorknob. "I'm coming in," he said loudly, and then walked inside the bathroom.

What met his eyes was-

Keith slammed the door closed.


	5. Blue Eyes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> lance and Keith and Shiro and Alfor... and then more Lance and Keith

  
_Well shit. Shit, shit, shit. I'm in deep shit now. Wow, Lance you're a shitty shithead. Delirious and stupid, Lance. What were you thinking? This is bad, so bad, shitting bad._

As soon as Lance had made eye contact with the hottie-emo-surfer-man, he hadn't even had time to react before the boy had promptly turned and slammed the door closed.

Lance was lounging in the small tub of their "dorm", very confining but it was water nonetheless, pressing scale tape over his wounds. The adhesive sunk between his scales within seconds, mending them so they stopped bleeding even if they weren't completely healed yet. Of course, his huge tail was flopping out of the end of the tub, blue and shiny and sleek.

Alarmed from the intrusion, Lance shoved his tape back into his satchel (which had surprisingly survived the waves, strapped tightly to his back) and used his arms to prop himself out of the tub. As soon as he was suspended over the warm water, his tail split, burning the whole time, and he grimaced, knuckles turning white as he clutched the sides of the tub.

Panting slightly, he drained the water from the mysterious tub (he had no idea how it worked, but the fresh water tasted good and helped him heal faster), and wrapped a towel around his waist. His hair was already a bit damp, drying quickly.

 _"I don't want to be an outcast. I definitely don't want to be the cause of the death of this human. So the only way to prevent it is to make sure that he tells no one."_ Lance, brow set, opened the door to the bathroom and peeked outside. The dude, Lance remembered his name was Keith, was stuttering to the buff one.

"He- he's uh- a, uh- um- he's...!!!"

"He's a _what_ you idiot?" Shiro looked confused.

Lance stepped forward, "He's an incredibly hot man." He grabbed Keith by the wrist and dragged him into the bathroom, shutting the door behind them. He promptly pushed Keith against the door and pinned him there with his body weight, faces inches apart. Keith was gaping like a fish out of water.

"You're a-" Lance slapped a hand over his mouth, frowning.

" _You're_ going to die if you tell anyone, I'm not kidding. The council will find out, they might anyways, so you best _bet_ that if you mention one _word_ of what you just saw to a single other living soul, I swear to Alfor, you'll regret it." Keith's cheeks were flushed and he looked pretty intimidated, but Lance honestly no idea if he was doing this right.

Keith's expression suddenly changed. "I know you." Lance blinked and pulled back a bit. His hips were pressed flush against Keith's and he realized now why his cheeks were red. _Whoops_.

"What?"

"Oh my god- you're the guy! Cheesy pick-up line guy!" Lance groaned inwardly. He wanted to slam his head on the tile floor.

"Yeah, well, thanks for saving my life but I have to go home right now. I'm glad your reconsidered my offer, though," Lance sighed.

"What? Nonono, I told you. I'm not gay." Lance wanted to roll his eyes. _Oh, of course you aren't. I wouldn't be surprised if you had a hard-on right now, the way your cheeks are the color of Fire coral._

"Whatever you say," Lance said, "Just bring me to the beach and you don't have to see me or question your sexuality ever again, okay?" He let Keith off the door and turned away, crossing his arms.

Keith shrugged. "Five minutes."

...

Lance gingerly stepped off the motorcycle, wearing the swim trunks from his satchel and one of Shiro's shirts (Keith's were too small). Long legs wobbly from the ride, and still a bit weak from his wounds, he held onto Keith's shoulder to steady himself. Keith remained on his bike, idling by the side of the road.

Right next to the near-empty beach, Keith looked beyond Lance to the sky, wispy clouds still a bit pink from the sunrise, cotton candy in the robins'-egg-blue sky.

"Okay well... thank you," Lance said awkwardly, mirroring Keith to look out to the horizon, "And remember, not a soul. Your life's in danger." He really didn't mean to make it so dramatic, but what else was he supposed to do? Have Keith blab about mermaids to the whole world? No, thanks.

"I'll remember," Keith grumbled. He was staring at Lance, as if not really believing he was real.

"I'll make sure to stay out of your way but..." Lance looked sheepish, "this is my home too, so if we see each other, just pretend you don't know me."

Keith nodded, then it almost looked like he was about to smile, "I'll be fine with that, you're pretty obnoxious."

Lance clutched his chest dramatically. "Ow," he deadpanned, and Keith chuckled under his breath. "Alright. Bye." Lance waved over his shoulder, then stumbled down to the dunes. Keith watched him plunge into the water and he swore he could make out the flick of a fin above the surface of the water as he watched the pretty fish-boy go home. And yet, still, he could feel the warmth of the boy's arms around his waist as he sped off on his bike.

 _Later, Blue Eyes_.   
...  
Lance found his way back to the colony easily, only after slapping Shiro's sopping shirt on the rock where Keith had been laying yesterday. His own shorts however, had not fared so well during his change, and he watched the pieces of fabric slowly drift away in the current as the salt-water filled his gills and everything came rushing, crushing back.   
_Dad. Mom. Ulaz. Thace. The fight. The Dark Kingdom. Lotor. Humans._

Inhaling deeply, Lance swam into a current and pulsed on his fluorescence, frankly terrified of what would happen when he got home. There would be no school today, not after a lockdown, so the twins would likely be home, as well as his parents. Everyone was... probably disappointed in him. How would he explain what happened? How was he supposed to avoid telling them about Shiro and Keith?

The sunlight was as grimy as ever as Lance dove into the neighborhood, and his skin already missed the bright rays of the surface. Cold wrapped its long fingers around his chest and tail, pressing in on him and making him shiver. Not many people were out and about, but the people who were stared at Lance as he passed. He felt their stares on his back as he weaved through the caves to his home.

He only paused for a few seconds outside the door, taking time to collect himself and his pile of excuses. Upon entering, Elena dropped the fishnet she was holding and rushed to Lance, throwing her arms around him. "Lance, Lance, Lance," she chided softly, "You're an idiot, my Lance. I was so worried." Elena pulled back, looking Lance over to make sure he wasn't injured. Thankfully, the scale tape had mended his wounds well and she didn't notice the thin, reddish slices across his tail.

"Hola, Mama. I'm sorry. I'm okay, though." Lance avoided the topic of his father completely- he could enjoy this peace with his mother before his father's rage ruined it. Lance glanced around and didn't notice the twins anywhere, which was odd. His father was probably in his room.

"Lance," Elena looked nervous, "Alfor came by." Lance's eyes nearly popped out of his head.

"Excuse me?" If Alfor had stopped by, that only meant one thing. He knew. He knew about Keith, he knew about the whole thing. And now Elena and Carlos knew too. Lance wished the rocky floor would open up and swallow him, and he'd never have to face anyone ever again. He'd be banished, Keith would be killed, and everything would go to hell. Lance felt his heartbeat jump and then accelerate, thumping so hard he could hear it in his ears.

"Oh! Please don't worry, I promise it's not anything bad! Well... sort of."

"That only makes me more worried!" Lance said, alarmed.

Suddenly, Lance saw movement in his peripheral and turned. His jaw slackened. Carlos swam towards him slowly, eyes downcast. In a rush of water, Lance found himself between his father's arms, cheek on his broad shoulder. It took him a second to register that his father was legitimately hugging him and not trying to strangle him.

"I'm so sorry... I'm so, so sorry," Carlos was saying, his long, dark hair that brushed his shoulders waving in front of Lances face. He couldn't bring himself to hug his father back, but he accepted being held, his father's shoulders shaking slightly. When he pulled back, Carlos' eyes were red and the bags underneath them were the color of his tail- deep grey.

Elena drifted over and put her hand gingerly on Carlos' shoulder, no doubt a signal that they had fought the previous night. Lance didn't blame her- his father's words still stung his skin. "Alfor came and talked to us early this morning. He has something he needs to talk to you about, and said to send you to the council as soon as you returned."

Confused, Lance looked between his parents. "Now?" Elena nodded. Carlos was staring at the floor, unable to meet Lance's eyes. Since his tail was so dark, his florescence was white, and the sparks on his shoulders were pulsing slowly. Lance knew what that meant.

Each type of marking had different meanings, the ones on a mer's cheeks were meant for happiness, friendliness, the ones on their ribs for a warning, and the list went on. Shoulders were meant for sadness, despair, in some cases even an apology. In fighting, it meant a retreat or surrender. Lance didn't want to accept it.

"I'll be back soon, then," Lance said loudly, and his father snapped out of it. He turned to go out the door, but Elena put a hand on his arm.

"Lance, whatever you chose, we support you." Lance nodded solemnly.

...

"Lance McClain-Sanchez, you are here today for committing an offense against the Council and the Mermaidian Code of Laws. I will now read your charges-"

"That's enough, Belthor." Alfor was positioned behind the dais, looking down on Lance. To his left was Allura, waiting impatiently behind her own dais, with the other 10 members of the council positioned around Alfor in a semi-circle. The cave that the Council used was hallowed in the shape of a half moon, it's walls high and sloping.

Each dais was a tall, chiseled block of stone, positioned around the room, with one in the middle for the accused. Lance had never been in the council room before- it was only meant for trials, but it was less grand than he had initially expected.

"Mr. McClain," Alfor started, clasping his hands together. "We are aware of your transgressions." Lance gulped. _So this is it._ "We are aware that last night, Ulaz and Thace told you of the Dark Kingdom, and you were then approached by humans, though you remained undiscovered. Your parents told me of the... ah... _conflict_ of last night, and informed me that you then left your cove. It was then brought to my attention by a sentry that you were caught in the storm and badly injured. What I wasn't aware of until this morning was that you washed ashore and were found by two humans, who presumably took you with them. And yet here you are again." Alfor pinned Lance with his piercing gaze. "Tell me, Lance. Did either of these humans discover your secret?"

No, Lance wanted to say. He pushed the word forward to his lips, tried choking it out, but all of Alfor's stripes were illuminated and his face was swimming in Lance's vision. Lance foggily remembered Allura saying something about this before, how Alfor had a gift to compel people to tell the truth. It's how he became the head of the council, no one could lie to him.

Lance looked down. "Yes." He heard Allura's small gasp echo through the water. He could barely look up, but he forced himself to. "Yes," he said again, louder. What else was he supposed to do.

Alfor's lights dimmed. He leaned back, rubbing his beard. "I see." Alfor wasn't that imposing up close. He wasn't heavily-muscled, in fact, he looked relatively frail, but Lance wasn't so easily fooled. He knew that when he was younger, Alfor had been second-in-command of the Pacific Army, his strategic plans of action conquering hundreds of Dark outposts. His tail was deep, royal blue, tinged pink at the ends just like his daughter's.

On his right shoulder blade, a trident was tattooed in Indian henna ink, only a few shades darker than his natural skin tone. It wasn't permanent but it was symbolic- the ink was from his late wife's home village. Every two months, Alfor made the week-long trip to the village to get it renewed and to visit his wife's family and village. Sometimes he took Allura with him. At present, Allura had a wave-patterned tattoo encircling her upper bicep.

"Lance, I have two options for you."

Two?

"The first is the routine process for this transgression: you will be banished, likely to a community by Asia, and the human will be dispose." Lance felt his scales prickling. _I'm so sorry, Keith._

"However, there is a second option. The council and I have been discussing a project that needs attention. It would entail you living on land for a period of time. You would collect data about what humans think mers are, if they have any ideas about our existence, and report back every week. You would experiment to see if it's harder to change back every week after exposure to your human form for so long. Record if your luminescence fades the longer you stay on land," Alfor paused, "and the human who knows of your secret would not be harmed."

Lance stood there dumbly, staring this beautiful, promising opportunity in pure bliss. Alfor might think that extended time as a human was a rightful punishment, every mer probably should, but... something deep inside Lance was pushing forward, excited and eager and foreign to Lance's mind. He felt his sail lift and his luminescence flared, every spot, every stripe, brighter than ever.

He'd made up his mind.

...

Keith was running next to a shirtless Shiro on the beach, heaving for breath as the damp sand dragged on his sneakers. He'd muddled several orders at Starbucks today due to an overflow of thoughts and emotions. After Blue Eyes left, Shiro and Keith had gone to Matt and Pidge's house, moving in easily with how little they had.

While Shiro claimed the guest room, Keith had been more than happy to take the basement, a furnished, warm room with strings of lights and old space posters everywhere. It was the glow-in-the-dark stars stuck on the ceiling that had caught Keith's eye. He didn't mind sleeping on the couch either- it was wide enough for two people and well-worn and it smelled like pine trees and campfire smoke. His clothes lay tucked away in plastic bins, but he knew they'd soon be splayed across every inch of his room.

He was looking forward to living with the Holts, it would be like having siblings. Since he was an only child, he loved that feeling, it was why Shiro's brother-like personality made them such a good pair, but also why he was so bad with little kids. He wasn't very nurturing, but he felt included and a part of something bigger when he was with close friends.

It also didn't hurt that he now had studio space for his art- a second dining room that he and Matt had cleared out to create a small art studio for Keith, complete with a new easel (a gift from Mr. and Mrs. Holt when they heard that Keith and Shiro were coming to stay), an ocean view- double doors that opened to the wide beach and then the sea, opportune for sunrises and sunsets and a minutes walk to the waves where he could surf.

The floor was already covered in clear plastic to protect the floorboards. Keith had spent 10 minutes just sitting cross-legged on his stool in the studio, eyes closed as he reveled in the tranquility of it all.

Everything was pretty overwhelming too, especially the fact that Blue Eyes was a _mermaid_. Merman? Keith couldn't get the image out of his head, the boy's sleek, wet back stretching over his tail, sparkling light blue, floppy but so, so elegant, feathery and slim and strong all at once. Blue Eyes, more like Blue Tail, Blue Hands, _Blue Blue Blue_. And he'd been so...

_No, I'm not gay for a mermaid. I'm not gay in general._

Keith sighed, focusing his breathing. " _In, two, three, four, hold, two, three, out, two, three, four, hold, two, three._ " His therapist's voice from when he was 15 stuck in his head, but he was heaving to hard to follow her advice.

"One more time around?" Shiro's voice broke Keith out of his trance. Keith slowed to a walk and Shiro continued to jog circles around him. Putting his hands on his knees, he shook his head. "Alright. I'll be right back!" Keith waved him and his abs and toned calves away. Fucking Shiro. Muscular as fuck.

Keith stretched up and put his hands behind his head. " _It opens your chest up. In, two, three..._ " Keith pushed her voice away. It was sunset time, his second-favorite time of day, the first being 2:00am on the beach where the sky opened and the stars shone down and kissed Keith's cheeks and eyelashes. People gathered around metal bins that contained large fires fueled by driftwood, dried seaweed, and the songs that people sang around them.

Red streaked across the sky, mixing with purple and orange and pink, dyeing the clouds a saturated mix as the sun dipped below the ocean. Keith sighed in wonderment. And then a figure emerged from behind a patch of rocks, tall and lean, with a dark tan and- "Keith!"

"I have no idea who you are," Keith said lamely, watching Blue Eyes flick his hair out of his eyes. He was wearing oversized orange swim trunks, and he had exchanged his large satchel-thing for a small pouch around his wrist. Keith wondered what was inside of it.

"Nice try. Can I move in with you? Also we need to stop at the bank. I'll explain everything." The boy's white teeth shone like pearls, and his eyes sparkled. Keith blinked, a little dizzy.

"What?"

Just then, Shiro jogged up to them, beaming. "New record!" He told Keith enthusiastically. "Oh, hey! Glad you're back, Blue Eyes."

"The name's Lance." Keith felt himself smiling, and looking to the stranger with brilliant eyes, he saw that he was too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! First off, I'm so sorry this took so long! I know I shouldn't make excuses but,, I've been in Maine the past four days skiing with my family so I haven't been able to write, and then before that I had a really big standardized test, and then before THAT I had a huge project due,,, anyways, I've been hella busy, but I should be good now :)) I know we’re only a few chapters in but we have so many more to come. I hope you continue to like my story :)
> 
> Do you guys want smut/lemon/whatever it's called in this fic? Lemme know,,, slide into my inbox ahahaha
> 
> I'm open to anything lol
> 
> Anyways. I'll try to update by this weekend, stay tuned! Ilyilyilyilyily 


	6. Soft Hands

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> enter, lance shows his fishy tail to the new roomies

"A what?!"

"A mermaid," Keith said slowly, and Lance nodded earnestly.

Shiro stopped walking and turned towards Lance, looking him up and down. They were heading back to the beach parking lot to head home, to be able to all talk together with Matt and Pidge about Lance moving in. What else was he supposed to do? He had nowhere to go, even though he had plenty of money at his disposal.

After he had accepted the council's offer- staying on land, saving Keith, being a  _spy_  (sort of), Alfor had explained nearly everything to Lance.

1\. Lance was only allowed to expose his secret to trustworthy, deserving humans, with a limit of five.

2\. There was a bank account under the name Alfor Altea that had a large amount of savings in it. While Lance was allowed to take whatever he needed, he was only allowed to splurge once, just enough to get new clothes and whatever other necessities he needed.

3\. Don't get drunk, killed, or a human pregnant.

Lance had counted up to 10 more rules, but he hadn't really paid much attention as he was planning how he would break it to Hunk. Allura already knew, but she had been waiting patiently for Lance when he had finally been released from the holding room after being interrogated by Alfor on the exact events of the morning.

"Lance! Are you crazy?!" she'd shrieked, then had hugged him so hard he thought his ribs would crack. "I was so worried," she said, then let Lance go and put on her 'Mom Face'. Stern and thin-lipped, she frowned, "You better not die up there."

Lance had laughed, then dragged her to Hunk's house where they explained everything to him. He ended up blubbering and kept on telling Lance to make sure to pack his lunch every day and eat healthily and make sure to visit every single week and to not forget him. Lance had poked his cheeks and promised he would eat healthily and visit every chance he could.

It was then that he remembered Allura's crush on Shiro, and had to go through his entire story of the morning's events  _again_ , and then answer all of Allura's dreamy questions about Shiro, including if he smelled like cinnamon (neither of them had any idea what cinnamon smelled like, but it was a human word and in human literature, especially the romance novels Allura read when she went to the surface, and authors sometimes described a significant other as smelling like 'pine trees' or 'cinnamon' or 'mint'.

"You lucky asshole, Shiro's gonna fall in love with you instead of me," Allura pouted, her pink luminescence glowing. Lance smiled sheepishly.

"I don't think so... Shiro really isn't my type anyway. And I  _thought_  that  _maybe_  Keith could be a potential candidate for Lover Lance's eligible bachelor's list, but I think he might actually hate me and/or think I'm a total freakazoid because of the whole 'ohmigawd you have a tail' thing. But whatever. Watch out humans, Lancey Lance is coming to town."

"Snazzy," Hunk verified helpfully. Allura just rolled her eyes.

Lance already missed them and his family, who had actually been quite pleased that Lance had been selected for the mission. He still wasn't on great terms with his father, but Lance was sure that Carlos only needed a few days to cool down and he'd be okay again.

He snapped back to reality when he saw Shiro staring at him anticipatingly. "Uh, what?" Lance asked, embarrassed. It was so easy to just drift off... Lance had years of practice from school.

"I said, Keith and I are staying at our friends' house, Matt and Pidge. I need proof that you're a legitimate... mer-person... and they probably will too, but if you're telling the truth then I'm sure you can stay for a few weeks." Shiro smiled earnestly.

Lance beamed, "Yeah, absolutely! Lead the way."

...

"Are you ready yet?" Pidge hollered through the bathroom door.

"Almost!" Lance replied.

He was laying in the filling tub in Matt and Pidge's home, clean water washing over his skin. Upon arrival, the siblings had immediately been really kind to Lance, and he knew he'd get along with them, even if he and Matt had the potential to bump heads sometimes from his apparent flirt manner, similar to Lance's. They were both extremely smart, and the whole house was sprinkled with odd knick-knacks and partially-built machines, no doubt designed and assembled by the siblings in their free time.

The only machine that Lance was able to recognize was the one next to the toaster, holding a knife over a pat of butter.  _Butter_. Lance had only heard from Ulaz what butter was. Since the mer had been sent to the surface to gain back weight after being held captive when he was little, Ulaz had described butter as ' _nichimaua'_ , the old Marmora word for 'Creator's Gift'. The way Ulaz had talked about it made Lance want to shove the entire stick down his throat.

As the water crept over his chest, Lance was suddenly nervous. He'd tried his best to explain to Matt and Pidge that he was a mermaid, but of course, they, along with Shiro, wanted proof, shoving him into the bathroom so he could change. He'd borrowed Shiro's shirt, oversized, because he'd been nude at the beach, and it now lay on the tile floor next to the tub. Lance made a mental note to ask Keith to remember to grab Shiro's  _other_  shirt of the rock he'd left it on that morning. It had been a  _long_  day, that's for sure. It was dark out, but the fluorescent lights of the bathroom were bright.

Lance had been as precautionary as he could. He warned the group that if they spread any information around, if they spoke of his secret to anyone, then they'd be killed. He knew that Alfor didn't rule these things lightly, he needed the group to know the gravity of the situation. They'd promised, Shiro had gone so far as to swear on his life, and Lance didn't think it was ironic- Shiro had seemed genuinely sincere, his fist over his heart and eyes deep.

Shiro reminded Lance of a shark, in some ways. His build, strong and sharp and toned, his dark eyes and hair, the startling bleached lock that hung at his forehead. Everything about him was precise and planned, skilled and smooth. His words commanded attention when he talked, even if it was just banter or small talk. Lance was drawn to him, even if not in a romantic way at all. Shiro seemed like a natural-born leader, but it also felt like he had walls up, walls that came down when he talked to the side with Keith. Lance had no doubt that they'd been close for years, and it actually seemed really sweet to see them act like little kids.

Dipping below the surface of the warm water (a new, wonderful concept- he'd only ever known cold), Lance felt his skin pinch and melt as his legs merged. Surfacing again, he slicked his hair back and called out, "You can come in!". The group of three rushed through the door quickly, Keith lagging behind a bit.

Matt was the first to talk, "Holy SHIT!"

Lance assumed that was one of those 'human swears' and he promised himself he'd ask Matt what they all were, now that he knew that the dude was okay with swearing in front of everybody. Maybe it wasn't as vulgar as his Human Studies teacher had told class it was. Pidge was writing things down in... his? Her? Their? notebook. Lance would also have to ask Matt about Pidge's pronouns.

Shiro knelt by the tub and looked down into the water, gazing at Lance's tail. Lance lifted it out of the water and rested his fin on the rim of the tub, breath coming in tight gasps as he recovered from the transformation. "You can touch it if you want. It's not poisonous or anything," he invited, folding his arms over his stomach. Matt's hands were soft and light over his scales, Shiro's calloused and warm. Pidge just kept on writing.

Lance looked up, forgetting briefly the strange sensation of soft fingers on his tail, the admiration of it all. His eyes met Keith, who was leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed, looking vaguely interested but not by much. Keith was a whole other world, even compared to Shiro. He was guarded and moody and elegant, like a stingray weaving through the housing coves at night. Lance felt like if he got to close, he'd get caught by Keith's barb.

It took Lance a second to realize that Keith wasn't looking directly back at Lance, more at his neck. It was then that Lance felt his gills fluttering nervously, and he slapped his hand over one side (painfully, by accident). Keith's eye-roll was small but visible. Lance's eyebrows suck in annoyance. It wasn't his fault his gills had a mind of their own. They fluttered like this when he was nervous (or lying- his parents discovered that quickly). 

"Wait, what are those?" Matt was pointing at Lance's face, and he was so stunned by the suddenness that it took him a few seconds to comprehend that Matt was pointing at his luminescence on his cheekbones.

He shuddered, dismantling his deep thinking, and nodded to Keith, "Turn of the lights." When the bathroom was dark, Lance pulsed on his lights and smiled in comfort. HIs ribs, hands, shoulders, collar... they all shone bright blue, the peaceful glow he used when he wanted to calm down or keep content. He didn't shine them to the max- that would be a little  _too_  much since they weren't in the murky ocean where the lights were slightly muted anyway.

" _Cool_ ," Lance heard Pidge whisper loudly, and he smiled. He could see their faces easily- he had sharpened night vision like all mers, but he knew that he probably looked like a bunch of glowing striped and spots with no body to the four roommates.

"Okay, Keith, lights on," Shiro announced, and Keith obliged, resuming his position on the door.

Pidge suddenly leaned close to Lance, frowning. "What are  _those_?" Lance looked to where Pidge was pointing and looked sheepishly to Shiro.

"Shiro, do you mind lifting me out for a second? Not all the way out, just so I can show Pidge..." Shiro was already standing. Gently, he hooked his forearms beneath Lance's arms and lifted him out of the tub, their chests flush together, water seeping through Shiro's shirt. But he didn't seem to care because he was peering over Lance's shoulder, watching his sail raise to its full height, spines arching like the sail of a swordfish. He illuminated the swirls and stripes on the thin webbing between the spines and Matt and Pidge oohed and ahhed over the sharp spikes.

Apparently, this caught Keith's attention. He pushed himself off the doorway and strode forward, looking at Lance quizzically. "May I?" he asked, fingertip hovering over a sharp spine, and Lance nodded. He was too busy having his face pressed into Shiro's rock-hard pecs to even care. But Keith's thumb-tip on the point of his spine sent a weird shiver down his tail and his luminescence flashed, sail quivering. He gritted his teeth as Keith moved away and Shiro set him back in the tub.

"So can I stay?" he asked finally.

Matt grinned, "Fuck yeah."

...

As Lance lay on the pull-out cot in the small attic room, he stared up at the ceiling, unsleeping. Back at home, his room was small and comfortable, filled with warm jets of water coming out from small holes in the floor. His bed was made of layers upon layers of kelp and seaweed sewn together, slippery and just a little bit slimy. He could curl up on his side, tail waving gently in the soft currents.

But here, everything was backwards. He only knew so much from human studies. Downstairs, the roommates were eating dinner- Lance could hear their plates clattering and their loud laughter- but he'd excused himself, saying he was too tired. While that was true, there was something more. He felt out of place, no matter how kind and welcoming they all- well,  _three of them_  were. He kept on getting a weird vibe from Keith...

Lance's bed was a small cot in the corner of the attic, bouncy and old. Lance didn't have the proper words for what it smelled like, but it was sweet and musty. Matt had given him a large quilt in case he got cold, but Lance had left it folded beside his bed, as the attic was already pretty warm, almost unpleasantly. He wiped sweat from his forehead and got up, feet light on the wooden floorboards as he padded over to the window, large and circular. It looked over the beach, and had a small beach beneath it. It took Lance a few tries, but he was able to figure out how to wrench it open, letting in a cool, relaxing summer breeze.

As the attic aired out, Lance lounged across the seat, resting his head on his folded arms. The salty air was comforting, but he felt his heart pinch a little. The second night in a row without his father's snores next door, his mother's hums as she prepared the twins' lunches early in the morning, Sebastian and Carmen bolting into his room too early and bouncing on his sleeping form until he was conscious enough to chase them back out.

Was this homesickness? After the fight the previous night, then the apologies earlier, everything at home was so tangled and confusing. Lance just wanted everyone to cool off- mainly his father. Their parting earlier had been rushed and stuttered, apologetic and awkward. Lance closed his eyes and the sea breeze kissed his face.

After 10 minutes or so, he stood, closed the window to a slight crack, and clambered back to bed. Lance fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.


	7. Eggs n' Fashion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> lance eats human food! shiro's a beauty guru, and lance goes shopping

Lance woke up slowly, the sun streaming through the attic window and landing on his face in a warm glow. He stretched out his limbs, pushing off his blanket to admire his long, tan legs. He noticed they didn't have hair on them- neither did his arms- and he supposed that was actually pretty nice. He didn't have toned calves like Shiro- his legs were actually pretty weak, but they were long and his endurance was good so he bet that he could probably run pretty fast. Running. That was an idea.

Lance yawned and got up from the bed, anxious for the day. Shiro had told him that he'd have to find a job, but Lance was socially inept in the human world- he didn't even know how these jobs worked. However, in order to live with the boys, he knew that he'd have to "pay rent", whatever that meant. He was realizing just how much his Human Studies teacher had missed.

He pulled on one of Matt's shirts that the teen had left in the attic (Matt was Lance's size so his shirts fit better than Shiro's) and a pair of 'boxers'. Lance climbed down the ladder from the attic and looked around. Matt had given him a tour the night before and Lance recognized the Holt siblings' doors, closed.

Lance slipped into the bathroom and relieved himself, something that wasn't taught in Human Studies but what his classmates chattered about anyways, laughing among themselves. Lance thought that the whole toilet thing was weird, but he guessed that he couldn't really blame the humans if he had no better suggestion. He fussed with his hair and poked around the cabinets, finding nothing of interest. The sink was pretty cool, and he spent a good amount of time running water over his hands.

Lance quietly walked down the stairs to the first floor and startled when he saw Shiro sitting on the floor, stretching out his legs in the living room.

"Morning, Shiro," Lance said and plopped down next to him on the floor. He mirrored Shiro's stance and flopped over his leg, flexing his foot. Shiro looked up in vague awe.

"Morning. You're super flexible," he commented, "it's kind of unnerving." Lance smiled. "We have a lot to do today- I'm glad you're not a late sleeper. First, clothes. You can't keep wearing ours. Do you have a credit card...? Or savings...?"

Lance nodded, "I have an account. I don't really know how to use it though. And I have the card thing in my bag." Lance looked over to his satchel, slung over a chair.

"That's fine, I can help. Breakfast first, though." Lance trailed after Shiro into the kitchen, all white surfaces and shining pots and pans. It was orderly and neat, and Lance looked again at the odd butter machine from the night before. "What would you like, Lance?" Shiro said, presenting the fridge to the mer.

Lance was lost for words. He had no idea what anything was. A large white jug, colorful round foods with green stems, a container of several large, brown eggs, the only food Lance recognized. "Ah..." Lance started weakly. He pointed to the eggs. "Those are eggs, right? May I have those?" Lance knew how to make hard-boiled eggs, seagull eggs at least, and he assumed he could try and replicate them if he could find a way to boil water.

"Sure! Scrambled, fried, sunny-side-up, over-easy...? How do you like them?" Lance blinked. There was more than one way.

"Um." He bit his lip, conflicted.

"Here, you go sit down and get out your card, I'll make you eggs, okay?" Lance nodded, relieved. He walked over to the table and sat, pulling his satchel up on the table. It was lumpy and light, packed with things from home. Lance made a mental note to place everything in the attic later that day. Pouring the contents out onto the table, Lance felt his heart tug.

Chapstick. Scale tape. Blue nail polish. Lucky conch. Sea glass necklace from Carmen. A picture in a ziplock bag of the family- from the one time that the group of five had traveled on land together. The twins were newborns, Lance a child, and their parents were genuinely smiling, everyone freckled and happy. Lance smiled sadly.

Also in a ziplock, the strange card with a series of numbers on the front. Lance examined it as a strange noise came from the kitchen, everything foreign. Lance inhaled through his nose and his stomach growled. He shouldn't have skipped dinner yesterday- he was starving.

As Lance mulled over the other knick-knacks in his satchel, Shiro moved busily around the kitchen, filling the house with the sounds of cooking.

"Breakfast is served," Shiro joked and set a plate in front of Lance, who couldn't help but gasp. Light, fluffy eggs with some sort of red sauce crisscrossed over them, a slate of brown something with green paste... it looked more delicious than it sounded. "Scrambled eggs with cheese and ketchup, avocado toast, and," Shiro set a mug of something in front of Lance, "Freshly, brewed coffee." He handed Lance a small, odd-looking trident- "Fork." Shiro demonstrated. Lance mirrored and closed his eyes in bliss. Flavors upon flavors... blissfully fluffy eggs, crunchy toast with salted avocado on top... everything tasted delicious.

"Shiro, are you a fucking god?" Lance asked, chugging coffee. It burned his tongue and he loved it.

Shiro laughed, deep and gravelly. "It's just eggs."

...

"Okay, Shiro. You're the beauty guru here, lead the way." Shiro laughed, and Matt turned to Lance as they walked down the busy California street. Shops on both sides of the street, the sounds of cars and people talking filled the city, embracing Lance in the feel of community. "I'm serious. He has a beauty channel on YouTube with one million subscribers." Lance figured he'd learn what YouTube and subscribers were soon, but he looked to Shiro for confirmation instead.

"You into beauty? Like makeup and stuff?" The image of a boy with painted red lips and black-lined eyelids had stuck in Lance's mind for years, someone he saw on the beach one day.

"Yeah, I'm really into it. Do you want me to do yours?" Shiro's eyes lit up at the opportunity. Lance imagined Shiro chasing Keith around their apartment shrieking, "IT'S ONLY EYELINER!" He grinned.

"Totally." Shiro practically melted.

He pointed straight ahead at a storefront reading 'Sephora'. "We'll have to stop here then." Matt rolled his eyes and branched off to the GameStop next to the store. Shiro was ecstatic as they entered the store, brightly lit. Lance heard a strange rhythm and looked around, over the rows and rows of makeup, to large boxy speakers suspended to the ceiling. He felt his steps fall in time with the beat and smiled to himself. Of course, they had music under water, but Lance always loved listening to the radios that humans brought to the beach sometimes, hearing the heavy bass and the thrum in his heart as he craved to sing along. He'd always been self-conscious of his voice though, so singing wasn't really an option.

Lance looked around at the sparkling shelves of eyeshadows and foundations and pens and brushes and  _everything was so clean and bright_. Shiro was like a toddler in a candy shop, ooh-ing and ahh-ing at a new highlighter and a new eyebrow set. Lance trailed behind him, watching his new friend chat with some of the employees (maybe they were friends?) and then turn to Lance, excited. "Monsieur Lancelot, please sit right here and let me give you a makeover!" Lance, exhilarated and surprised by Shiro's giddy persona, carefully settling down into the poofy stool.

I'm a flash, Shiro was back, cupping a dozen cosmetics in his big hands, holding brushes between his teeth. "Stay still," he muttered, leaning forward.

Lance was a statue as Shiro flitted around him, brushing this and that over his soft skin. Lance wasn't allowed to look in the mirror, but the lingering gazes of passing customers made him feel confident. Shiro chattered away as he worked, talking about his YouTube channel, his dream of becoming a pilot, basic knowledge that Lance would need to know.

Apparently, YouTube was this internet platform where people posted videos. Shiro showed Lance a video from his channel on his phone and had to explain the workings of a phone as well. Lance had only known of house phones, but he'd always wondered what the boxy rectangles the humans always carried were. In the video, Shiro appeared as Lance saw him, without makeup, smiling at the camera enthusiastically.

"Hellooo~ beauties. Shiro here, today I'm going to be trying out the new Naked palette, so let me know in the comment section your favorite shade!" Poppy, bass-boosted music played in the background as Shiro applied his base layer of makeup, and Lance watched in awe as his skin smoothed over into clean, bright tones of beige. His eyelids popped with color, and long, thick fake lashes brought out his dark eyes. Lance watched every blend, every brushstroke, and soon enough Shiro (the real one, not the one on the screen) was standing back proudly, tipping up Lance's chin with his pointer finger.

"You look fucking hot," he said confidently, and Lance grinned in anticipation, scooting his chair over to the mirror.  _Woah_. His skin was smoothed over with the perfect shade of caramel brown, rosy pink and highlighter on his cheeks. His jaw and cheekbones were made to look sharper with contour, but it was so well blended that Lance wouldn't have even known Shiro had used it unless he'd asked. His eyes were framed with dark falsies and eyeliner, the shadow a blend of blues. On his lips was a light pink, pretty and soft. Lance remembered it was called matte.

"Oh my Alfor, I  _love_  it. So much." Shiro danced a circle around Lance happily, pulling him up from the seat.

"Good, because you look flawless." He scooped up all of the makeup he had used and deposited it onto the check-out counter, joking with the girl who worked at the register about Lance's new interest in makeup. Lance winked at the girl flirtily, and she giggled, handing Lance the black-and-white-striped bag packed with his new cosmetics. "But we're not finished yet. You have to get clothes, too."

...

As it turned out, the credit card was accessible and was loaded with enough money to start Lance off. Shiro agreed that it wouldn't allow him to have his own apartment, but that was fine since both of them liked the fact that Lance had moved in. Matt had met up with the two after they had exited Sephora, and now they were walking to Target, Shiro's apparent favorite store.   
  
  
  


"I shit you not, this is the best store you'll ever go into, Lance," Shiro commented matter-of-factly as they walked through the doors, unveiling the loud, bright center. Lance was dragged everywhere, Matt in tow, Shiro shoving outfit after outfit at him for a solid two and a half hours. Lance loved the humans' style, especially at this store.

T-shirts, shorts, fishnets, tank tops, socks, boxers, sandals, rompers, headbands, barrettes, face wash, moisturizer, fruits and vegetables that were all new and foreign to Lance, along with a shitload of 'junk food'. Shiro said that he wanted to film a video with Lance as soon as they got home and have a taste test. Lance wasn't very good at all with money yet, but he didn't have to be a human to know that the amount that they spent at Target was obscene.

However, he walked out feeling happy and confident, wearing new clothes, a new face, and basically a new body. He wore short overalls that skimmed his thighs over a striped shirt, and women's sandals which had delicate straps that crossed over his ankles. He felt gorgeous.

As the three loaded the groceries into Shiro's Subaru, Matt spoke up. "We should also find you a job today, unless your bank account can cover your part of the rent." Lance paused unloading the cart, thinking to himself. What was there to lose? Yeah, it might be hard, but how difficult could it be? Plus, learning about the human world included learning how jobs worked.

"That sounds like a good idea. I'm not experienced in anything, though."

Shiro smiled thinly, "I have the perfect job for you then."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm sorry this took so long ahhhHHH i'll update again this weekend hopefully!


	8. Makeup and McDonalds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> not only do lance and shiro go shopping, they also go to mcdonalds AND lance is a guest star on shiro's beauty guru youtube channel!

"What... is this place?"

"McDonalds," Shiro said, eyes holding a dead kind of humor.

"And you... want me to work here?" Lance asked, gazing up at the golden arches. He could smell the grease from his spot in the parking lot where the three boys stood.

"C'mon, your meal's on me," Matt commented, leading Lance into the restaurant. Upon entering, a toddler promptly ran into Lance's leg, his mother chasing after him apologetically. Lance startled slightly, but followed Matt and Shiro to the counter, a menu displayed over the cashiers. In the back, Lance spotted people shoving baskets into bubbling, greasy oil and others flipping patties on a messy grill.

"Basically, if you work here, you'll be on your feet the whole time, you'll get oil burns, customers will treat you like shit, but your pay is stable and you get to learn about," Matt paused, then raised his voice up an octave and did jazz hands, "Our beautiful California economy." Shiro snickered.

Lance wrinkled his nose, "I don't know if those are the perks I'd prefer," he mumbled.

"Well, merboy, you don't have another choice since literally every other decent job was taken by college students. God, we're such dicks to them, no wonder those cute prep boys visiting from the East Coast hate us so much, they can never find good jobs because the college kids always take them. They get all sour when they work at places like this," Matt sighed blandly, flicking his eyes over to a haughty server with sandy-yellow hair and dark eyes.

"Lucky you, being able to work close to him," Matt commented, winking at Lance. Shiro rolled his eyes.

"Alright, let's actually get something to eat," he suggested, dragging Matt and Lance over to the counter. Lance gazed up at the menu, confused. "And Lance, don't worry, I'll order for you if you want. Just go find us a table."

Lance nodded appreciatively and turned, scanning the eating area for an empty booth. Upon finding one, Lance tentatively sat, glancing over his shoulder at Matt and Shiro, who were still ordering while motioning to the menu. Matt's face was red- the hot employee was the one taking their order.

Surveying the restaurant, Lance let his eyes float over families who sat together, some in silence, some in complete chaos as the younger children crawled over their parent's laps, shrieking at each other with ketchup-coated lips. Lance's stomach churned. He felt as if he didn't belong anywhere near here, that he just belonged under the ocean surface, away from the rambunctious lives of humans.

Lance suddenly straightened, frowning. No, he wanted this. He was here, on the surface, making friends and getting a life. If he had chosen banishment, he would be positively miserable. He'd never be able to get this opportunity if he was banished, he'd never have these experiences. Lance had no clue what would happen once Alfor had all the information he wanted, would Lance have to go back to the ocean? Fake his death?!

And  _then_ there was the whole problem with Zarkon and his Dark Kingdom. While Lance was up here, he could miss everything. He wanted to be there to defend his village if anything bad was to happen, but Lance was content in the fact that he was helping them another way, observing the human world.

Still, how much could he really fit in? How many times would he screw up, be clueless, before he understood things like normal? And what would happen over time, only changing once a week to go down to the village? Lance wasn't ready to give up being a mermaid, not completely, and it worried him being out of water for long.

Nevertheless, excitement overrode his anxiety. This was a good thing. This was an opportunity to learn about the humans, decide if giving up his life as a mermaid was worth it to become a human if the time ever came, and most of all, saving Keith's life. They might not exactly get along, as Keith seemed distant and distasteful of Lance, but it didn't matter. A life was a life, no matter whose it was, and it was Lance's firm obligation to protect Keith's with his own.

"One Big Mac and a large order of fries for Mr. Lance McClain, 100% certified NOT beef, there might be some unknown substances in there, you never know," Shiro said matter-of-factly as he placed a tray of food in front of Lance.

"Oh man," Matt said nervously, "Remember that documentary,  _Food Inc._? That was mad scary, dude. I went vegan for two weeks before I needed bacon again." Lance looked between the two, confused.

"Nevermind. Dig in, Lance."

As Lance sunk his teeth into the burger, he winced. What  _was_  this? He chewed slowly, eyes closed. "I mean, it's good," he said slowly, still swallowing. Shiro and Matt giggled like schoolgirls. They both had chicken tenders.

"It's barely FDA approved," Shiro pointed out, and then had to explain what the FDA was, then what chain restaurants were, then what the deal with the clown was.

Lance picked up a fry and examined it, skeptical. "Oh, don't worry. The fries are fine. They're not meat," Matt snorted, shoving a handful in his mouth. Ketchup dripped off his fingers.

Lance copied, then groaned in delight. "This is fucking delicious," he said loudly, and Shiro chuckled. Good grief, what was Alfor doing, keeping these heaven sticks away from the mers?

"Jeez, what did you eat  _down there_?" Matt asked incredulously, referring to Lance's village.

"Boiled clams, lobster, crabs, fish, seaweed. I tried an apple once," Lance mused, going in for more fries.

"How are you _alive_?"

Finally, a question Lance could answer. He'd learned about this in Anatomy. "Well, you guys have to have fruits and vegetables and dairy and all that other stuff, right?" Shiro and Matt nodded, "Well mers mostly eat meat because we need the protein for our muscles. We live off of protein and minerals from our "sea vegetables", like kelp and sea grass. Our taste buds aren't developed like yours, so everything down there pretty much tastes the same.

"But this," Lance gestures to the food on the table, "I can taste. It's processed and fatty, something we never have." Shiro nodded, leaning back.

"Well, I guess we'll have to do a taste-testing video on my channel after we do a Get-To-Know-My-Hot-New-Friend video," he mused, and Lance smiled.

...

"Hellooo, beauties! It's Shiro, here to give you a mermaid-inspired look with my new friend Lance." Shiro waved at the large black camera, then pointed to Lance, "This babe is visiting from Cuba, isn't he gorgeous?" Lance blushed, winking at the camera.

"Since Lance is new, we wanna get to know him! Sooo, I asked you guys on Twitter to send in questions for me to ask him." Shiro looked at Lance excitedly, "Are you ready?"

Shiro started on Lance's face (for the second time that day). They sat in the living room of the Holt's house, relaxing in squishy chairs with makeup surrounding them. Shiro has done his own makeup earlier, decked out in full lashes, wings, and highlight. Lance thought he looked absolutely flawless.

"First question, can you twerk?" Lance looked mildly confused.

"Pardon?" He asked, staring at Shiro.

"That's a no," Shiro winked.

"Are you single?"

Lance blushed, then looked right into the camera. "Only if you're interested." Shiro slapped his palms to his cheeks, staring wide-eyed between Lance and the camera.

He continued reading through his phone. "Fuck, Marry, Kill: Dylan O'Brien, Cole Sprouse, Timothee Chalamet." Shiro had to look up pictures of each actor for Lance before he was able to answer.

"Fuck Sprouse, Marry Dylan, and Kill Timothee."

This went on for an hour, Shiro slowly working his way over Lance's face as he asked him questions. By the end of the video, Lance had answered about every aspect imaginable. He was kind of exhausted, thinking about all the different questions.

At one point, Keith stopped in, saying 'hi' to the camera and asking Shiro if he wanted anything for lunch, nodding to Lance with wide eyes.

"That's a look," he'd mumbled before walking out.

The rest of the filming went perfectly, funny and sweet and deep, just as Shiro had planned.

"And THAT, babes, is the completed mermaid look, featuring Lance McClain. Lance, thank you, I hope you enjoyed."

"I did," Lance interjected.

"And I'll see you guys in three days! Muah~". Shiro stopped the filming and sighed loudly, leaning back in his chair. "That's exhausting, good grief. And now I have to go back and edit. I'll show you the finished project when I'm done, before I put it up." Lance nodded in appreciation.

...

Keith sat cross-legged on his stool in his new studio, practicing his brush-work on a new canvas. He was painting thin, pale blades of grass growing on a sand dune, overlooking a calm ocean. A few of the blades looked a little wonky, but he suspected he'd still be able to sell it for a good amount.

He sent his art to a small sea-side shop that sold antiques and cute bits and bobs, and it was nice having an extra bit of income alongside working at Starbucks. It also boosted his self-esteem as an artist, as all of his paintings had sold.

Lance's voice startled him. "Wow. I didn't know you painted." Keith turned, unamused. Lance was leaning against the doorframe, staring past Keith at the canvas. He still wore his makeup, lid-lined and honestly very pretty.

"I do. It's my major in college," Keith replied dully. He got a strange vibe from Lance. Besides the whole mermaid thing, which Keith was still very skeptical about despite the proof Lance had shown the previous night, something about the way he talked, moved, acted, created a strange feeling in Keith's stomach. He thought it best to just avoid the boy completely.

"You should paint me sometime," Lance suggested lightly, admiring the blue tones of paint on a small desk beside Keith's stool.

" _Titanic_  much?" Keith snorted, but waved off Lance's confusion. He definitely didn't want to explain that. "Besides, I don't do free work." He didn't really want to paint Lance either- he wasn't good with portraits.

"I'll pay you," Lance assured him, then paused, "And I can be in 'mer form'." That sparked Keith's interest a bit. He  _did_  want to paint the tail. Maybe he'd have Lance face away so that he didn't have to stare at his face for hours.

"It would take a while," Keith said hesitantly, fidgeting with his paint brush.

Lance shrugged.  _Worth it_.


	9. First Return

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance visits his family!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First of all, I’d just like to apologize. When this chap originally uploaded, it was about 6 words because of an odd software blip. Thank you so so much to the reader that pointed it out to me- and thank you all for sticking with me while I found and solved he problem. I now re-present chapter 9 to you and I hope you enjoy it!

_hes so hot omfg_

 

_Tell Keith to come on the channel more!_

 

_#Shiro’sBabes ship #Klance_

 

_Lance <3_

 

_please do more collabs with him!!_

 

_Does Lance Have an Insta?_

 

"Good grief," Shiro groaned, scrolling through the comments on the video he and Lance made. _Klance_? Keith and Lance? Shiro hid a smile. He had to admit, they'd be cute together, but they showed no interest in each other so what was he supposed to do? Play matchmaker?

 

He decided against telling the two boys that half of his subscribers now shipped them, but the two would find out eventually if they watched the video. The same thing had happened when Shiro had Matt do a collab with him, even though their ship name, Shatt, was awful. It had died down after a while but seriously made Shiro re-evaluate his relationship with his friend.

 

True, he'd had feelings for him once, a while back when they'd both been experimenting with sexuality and shit, but that had been years ago. Shiro liked to think that it made them closer, even if it was awkward to think about.

 

Anyways, Lance wouldn't be watching the video anytime soon- as soon as he got off work he was going to the ocean for the "weekly check-in" the King guy made him do. Shiro was still pretty clueless about the going-ons of Lance's world, but he supposed that it was probably for the better. He'd been sworn to secrecy, so Lance probably thought that it would be easier for everyone if the amount of information they knew was less rather than more.

 

Lance also wouldn't be home until the next day. He'd gotten the job at McDonald's despite his minuscule resumé that only included "has cooked before" and a recommendation from Shiro. Surprisingly, he'd been asked to come in the next day.

 

Lance had been ecstatic, going on and on about "being a _real_ human" and "a productive member of society". His hopes had been squashed at work, and he'd headed straight for the bath when he'd gotten home. Shiro walked in on him- asleep underwater, bubbles floating from his lips, tail flopped over the side of the tub.

 

"It wasn't _that_  bad," Lance had admitted, but he'd presented the oil burns on his arms and hands with a troubled expression, "I think I need gloves of some kind." But anyhow, he'd gone back, deciding to stick to it and work through the hard parts. He didn't have another choice, anyways.

 

Matt and Pidge were out getting supplies for their new machine project, and Keith was at work. With just Shiro alone in the house, there was only one thing he wanted to do.

 

And the giant stereo was perfect for it.

 

Taylor Swift dance party? On.

 

...

 

Lance felt his heart beating faster as he and Keith approached the ocean. Lance didn't even mind clinging to Keith's back as they drove to the beach, the purr of the motorcycle thrumming under Lance's thighs.

 

Keith had picked Lance up from work to bring him to the ocean since he was the only one available, but he was still a bit moody since it was _his_  break time and here he was, driving a mermaid to the beach so he could go and swim to his mer-village and talk to the mer-King. Keith rolled his eyes internally.

 

It all seemed like bullshit, and he'd been convinced that Lance was either crazy or on drugs (or both) until he'd shown everyone his tail, and then he'd convinced himself that maybe _he_  was the one that was crazy. But Shiro, Matt, and Pidge had seen it too so maybe they were all crazy.

 

Lance was jittery with anticipation- he could practically feel his scales poking through his skin, his sail lifting on his spine. His arms were tight around Keith's skinny, warm waist, and he wore baggy shorts and a T-shirt, just in case something got ripped by accident.

 

"When will you get back? Shiro wants to know," Keith called over his shoulder to Lance. In truth, he wanted to know too, but he wasn't going to say so. Lance tipped his head to the side, thinking.

 

"Hopefully tomorrow morning. Will you pick me up?"

 

"I surf in the morning. Shiro can probably pick you up after his run. But seriously, you need a car."

 

Lance bit his lip, "I don't know how to drive!" He shouted over the wind. Keith visibly deflated, annoyed.

 

"Of course you don't..." he mumbled, rolling his eyes as they pulled into the beach's parking lot. It was already crowded as fuck, and he had to slowly putt down the long rows of parking to find a space to squeeze into.

 

Lance hopped off the cycle gracefully, a big smile clear on his lips. "Anyways, I'll probably be back around 8 or 9. See ya!" He waved to Keith, then sprinted to the sand, running down the beach with excitement. His homesickness had only grown over the days, and he was anxious to be in the real sea again. True, the bath with its warm water and jet pumps were like a dream, but the harsh, sharp seawater had its own appeal.

 

The only problem was... the beach was packed. People were everywhere, tanning, talking, laughing. Little kids ran around sandcastles, hot college kids lounged in skimpy bikinis and bright shorts, aging couples sat under umbrellas with wrinkled skin and sunglasses. The beach was alive, and the ocean was crawling with nosey humans.

 

Lance wrung his hands, turning around slowly. How would he be able to change out here? One mistake- being fully submerged- could expose his secret. He couldn't take the chance with so many people.

 

Suddenly, someone tapped his shoulder. Turning, warm happiness spread through Lance body. " _Lonce_!" Allura exclaimed happily, pushing her accent out. She was in her human form, brown skin shimmery with sunscreen. Her slim figure sported a floral bathing suit, and a large, floppy sunhat covered her poofy white hair.

 

"Allura!" Lance breathed as her long, warm arms slid around his shoulders in a hug. She smelled like flowers and the ocean, and when she pulled back, Lance saw her wink behind her dark sunglasses.

 

"Come with me," she said happily, leading Lance down the beach. As they picked their way through the crowded beach to the lesser packed rocky area, full of jutting rocks covered with sea moss and snails and barnacles, Allura let her excitement shine through. "Sooo? Tell me everything. We still have a bit of a way to walk before we get to a safe place to change."

 

Lance began from the beginning, of course, mentioning how he'd shown everyone his tail in the tub, how Keith seemed like a mysterious asshole, how hot Shiro was but how Lance thought that he belonged with Allura. How Pidge didn't seem to have a gender and how Matt was going to teach him about memes and swearing. How McDonald's was nasty but how good the heaven sticks (French fries) were, how the hot oil had already burned his hands. How makeup had felt on his face, how Keith had reluctantly agreed to paint him, how he missed the ocean but loved the land.

 

Allura listened with interest, eyes wide as they walked through the jagged rocks. "So do you think you'll make it up here? I know it must be hard anyway, even with all those amazing things," Allura looked away, "I'm a little jealous. I mean, everyone is. You're the most popular boy in town now. Who knows, maybe you'll have a coming-home parade." The tone of sourness bittered her voice, and Lance stopped.

 

"Hang on, Allura. What's that about?" His voice was calm and quiet, trying to understand his best friend's words. Something sad and envious flashed under her eyes.

 

"Father says that... after my next birthday, I'm not allowed to visit the surface again. He says I need to 'get my priorities straight' and to stop being so 'enamored with the human world'. He says it's not healthy. But what about what I say? I want to go on adventures up here! I know I'm supposed to lead the village, but now you're up here, having the time of your life, and I'm stuck down there with government lectures and diplomatic meetings." Allura sighed, turning away, "Don't get me wrong... I'm sure I'll love to lead, just like my father, but there are some things that I'll never get to experience because of this." Lance's eyes softened.

 

"Allura, don't say that. Seriously, I'll talk to your dad, I'll ask him if you can come up with me next week, if only for a few days. You deserve it! You've worked so hard, you should at least be able to come up with me for a few days. Plus, you know better what to look for in a society than me, so you'll be able to bring more information to your Dad relative to what he wants to know. I'm just a commoner, princess."

 

 

This made Allura smile, pushing her hair behind her ears. "He might not buy it, Lance," she said slowly. The population of the beach began to thin the father they walked down the coast of the water, towards craggy cliffs that towered above the ocean, waves dashing against their sides as seagulls circled overhead. Soon, they'd be far enough away to change in the ocean without being seen. 

 

"Well if not," Lance said happily, "I'll just have to kidnap you."

 

...

 

"Ahh, Mr. Mcclain," Alfor said, swimming forward to clap Lance firmly on the shoulder. His eyes held curiosity and interest as he looked down at the young mer, and he lingered for a few seconds before swishing up to his podium, addressing the rest of the semi-circle of the Council. "Fellow Council members. As I'm sure you remember, last week we sent Mr. Mcclain up into the human world to repent for his transgressions against the merworld. Might I say, Lance, your reputation has only grown around here. You'll be happy to learn that Mr. Ulaz and Thace of the Marmora clan have returned to your housing cove just in case." Alfor's eyes narrowed.

 

"Just in case, sir? Are you saying that there has been controversy?" Lance asked anxiously. What did it mean that Ulaz and Thace were there?

 

Alfor laughed humorlessly, luminescence flashing, "Of course there's controversy, boy! What do you expect, a special ruling for a mer that broke our number one rule to go unnoticed? Everyone on this side of the coast knows your name! And not everyone is happy with my choice, let me tell you. I've been swamped with work for the past week." Alfor exhaled a quick, short breath, then recomposed himself, smoothing back his hair into its short ponytail. 

 

Lance felt his hands shaking and he pressed them firmly to the sides of his tail. "I'm sorry to have caused you trouble, sir, I really am." He flashed the pattern of stripes on his shoulders traditionally used for apologies, fast and slow. Alfor flashed them back, accepting the offer.

 

"It's not your fault, Mr. Mcclain, that some mers cannot see reason in this area. Please forgive my outburst. Anyways, please tell me about your week. I'm very interested in your discoveries, considering you've been productive, Allura tells me." Lance glanced at his friend, lingering to the side of the podiums instead of at her normal spot beside her father.

 

Lance breathed in deeply, thinking back again through his week for key details. "I have alerted 4 humans of my secret," Lance started shakily, and some of the Council members shuddered, leaning forward, "But they've been sworn to secrecy. I trust them, and it was the only way I could deduct that would allow me to gain access to a living space and people who could teach me about the world. I don't plan on telling anyone else unless the need is urgent." Lance spoke with easy formality, constantly glancing from face to face, podium to podium, observing reactions and postures. 

 

"No one had the slightest idea that we live off the coast, no one believes we're real." It hurt for some reason, saying it out loud. It stung that billions upon billions of beings didn't believe in you, even if it was for the best. "They all think we're some sort of myth, and I didn't see or hear anything around town that denoted to us. We've done well hiding, Alfor, congratulations." 

 

Lance continued, "I live in a house with the four people, all around my age, and I have a job. They're all- well, except one who I think may be non-binary- men, so there's no chance of me getting anyone pregnant, and they're all very nice too. They helped me get new clothes, access my bank, which, by the way, is very full so thank you, and find a job."

 

Alfor leaned forward, raising an eyebrow, "And where do you work?" The Council whispered to each other. It was then that Lance noticed that his occupation may not be the best thing to brag about. 

 

Biting his lip, Lance started, "I handle the financial and service work at a multi-million dollar food industry." It wasn't a lie.


	10. Overwhelm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance meets with Ulaz and Thace, and questions his own feelings

Lance was tangled in so many arms, he didn't know whose was whose. Flashes of Carmen and Sebastian's identical pale luminescence, the warmth of Hunk's voice, his mother's worried hands on his face. The water of his family's cove was warm and comforting, though dark.

 

Everyone shone their luminescence as they disentangled from Lance, faces still holding smiles. "Mi hijo," Elena said affectionately, "Please sit down, tell us everything. We've missed you so much."

 

So Lance told the story again, coasting over some bits so not to worry his mother, talking about butter and fat and burgers, telling everyone about the wonders of the bathtub.

 

He was interrupted about halfway through when his father entered the room, followed closely by Ulaz and Thace, the couple's dark shapes quickly turning excited, purple luminescence illuminating the room further. The expression on Lance's father's face was unreadable as he slunk into the room, tail churning water.

 

A dark shiver skated over Lance's spine as he watched his father with wary eyes. He still hadn't forgiven him, even if his homesickness had led him to believe that his father might just miss him too. "Lance," Carlos grumbled with his low voice, "How was it, son?"

 

Lance's sail fanned out, stretching up behind his back as he stood. His fintips sharpened involuntarily, mirroring Thace's shark-like fin instead of the flowing fish-like shape they usually held.

 

It was Carlos' fault Lance was in this fiasco in the first place. If he hadn't been so angry at Lance after the close call with the humans, Lance never would've run away, gotten caught in the storm, or been seen by Keith and Shiro. But now here they were.

 

"Fine," Lance snapped, broadening his chest. His father moved silently to his room, leaving Ulaz, Thace, and the uncomfortable tension in the room with the Hunk, the twins, and Elena.

 

"Lance!" Thace broke the silence, sweeping forward to crush his nephew to his chest, "I'm glad you're well. Ulaz and I have news for you, if you'd like to go talk somewhere when you finish telling your story." An urgency in Ulaz's naturally calm eyes was concerning.

 

"Absolutely. I'm almost finished anyways." Elena pouted, pointing to the tuna she's prepared for Lance, and who could say no to Mom's cooking? Dinner was long and loud, and Allura came over too, talking diplomacy and politics with Ulaz and Thace, who basically pledged allegiance to her at the dinner table, vowing to support her when she took over the community. She was honestly flattered, and acted brave even though the two mers were at least two heads taller than her.

 

After all the talk of Lance's weeks to come ended, Allura and Hunk left, and Elena put the twins to bed, Ulaz and Thace led Lance outside, then up towards the school. When they passed the boundary of the village, Lance grew confused.

 

"Ulaz? Where are we going?" He asked, flicking his tail hard to keep up with them.

 

"Surface," Ulaz muttered to him, pushing up through the water so the group could ride the currents of the waves into shore.

 

...

 

As the three sat together on the beach, lounging on the sand as the sun dipped under the horizon. Many people still remained on the beach, but the mers had changed to their human forms far out, so there was nothing to worry about. They wore swim trunks, surprisingly enough, that they carried in their satchels. Lance was relieved that he had an extra pair as well.

 

On a side note, Ulaz and Thace could be supermodels. Lance couldn't remember if he'd ever seen them in their human forms, but holy shit, they looked like gods.

 

They'd been chatting casually for a few minutes before Thace turned his attention on Lance. "As you remember, we're going to the Dark Kingdom next week to talk to Lotor. There's been more reports of mers getting kidnapped for their Quintessence this week, so we need you to keep an eye out on land too."

 

Ulaz stepped in, "You're just as much an ambassador as we are, Lance. You must be vigilant."

 

Lance leaned forward and brought his legs to his chest, resting his chin on his knees. "Do you think there's going to be a war?" It had been on his mind.

 

Thace sighed heavily. "It's been a war for decades, Lance. It's just now about to pick up speed. So many things are happening behind the scenes, things that neither you nor I know about. We may be the Blade, but we're not informed on everything.

 

"However, if fighting breaks out, we will have to move your village immediately. We cannot risk an invasion that would blow our cover to the humans. You won't be here to see it, but the Blade is moving down the coast. They'll be passing through this village, collecting volunteers for the fight.

 

There have been sightings of a disconnected Dark Kingdom, a smaller sector that is parallel in location to Peru, except very off-coast. We have reason to believe that Zarkon is at that settlement and is now planning an attack that will occur near Costa Rica, so we need to be ready. Most of the Blade will be traveling by plane, but a good amount will be swimming.

 

"Basically, be on guard. Dark Kingdom soldiers have been known to come up on land to seek out mers in hiding or get information on their whereabouts. Since you're a prominent name right now, you may be in danger. Added to the fact that Alfor may be leaving to join the front, leaving Allura with the village, we are vulnerable."

 

Lance dug his toes into the sand, absorbing all the information. Thace didn't seem to concerned for Lance's maturity, which he was thankful for, but it was still a lot to swallow. So the war was coming to the coast, not too far from the southern city of California that Lance's village was located, and Zarkon was looking for mers like him.

 

Ulaz placed a large hand on Lance's shoulder, comforting him. The tattoo on his bicep rippled over his muscles, and his eyes were as sharp and focused always. They belonged to a fighter, a soldier, something Lance feared he'd never be.

 

Sighing, Thace sat up and stretched, then jumped to his feet. Someone was playing guitar nearby and Thace turned to Ulaz, holding out his hand. "Dance with me?" He asked.

 

It was so out of the blue, Lance nearly started laughing. But Ulaz took Thace's hand in an instant, smiling childishly. Lance watched his uncles tiptoe around the sand in bare feet, pale skin dyed pink with the sunset.

 

He wondered what that would be like. Sharing a house, a bed, a heart with someone. Someone to kiss or to hug or to vent to. Someone to drink coffee with and splash water with and just talk with.

 

Lance looked out to sea and scoffed as Keith came to mind.


	11. Harmless

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance teases Keith, some Shiro and Matt, pancakes with the whooooole holt household

Keith was panicking. He'd been casually sitting on his surfboard, legs dangling into the ocean, quite a ways out, when something slick and smooth had rubbed against his leg. He nearly dropped his sketchbook and phone in the ocean in his rush to shove them back into his small, waterproof fanny pack (which he wasn't at all ashamed of, he loved it).

 

Searching the calm, morning water, his pulse raced. He knew better than to jump to the conclusion that it was a shark, but _still._

It was 5:45 a.m.

 

No one else was in the ocean.

 

He was completely alone on the calm water.

 

" _It was probably just a fish_ ," Keith thought, panicky, " _A tiny little harmless guppie, that’s it_." Keith looked around once more, then slowly lowered himself back to a kneel, not daring to drag his legs in the water anymore. Gulping, Keith slowly dipped his hand into the crystalline water to start paddling to shore.

 

Suddenly, something slid up his hand, grabbing his forearm. Keith yelled and jerked back, nearly falling off his board. A brown-haired, blue-eyed face popped up out of the water, glowing with laughter, gills fluttering with glee.

 

"You should've _seen_ your face!” Lance managed to shout between giggles.

 

"Lance!" Keith yelled angrily, his hand over his pounding chest.

 

Lance bobbed in the water, a devilish grin on his lips. "I just had to. _Priceless_." Keith raked a hand through his hair, still reeling from the shock.

 

"I'm evicting you from the house," he sputtered, frowning at the mer. He surreptitiously glanced down into the water and saw the blurry form of Lance's sleek tail. The stripes on the boy's cheeks glowed softly as he floated in the water, gazing up at the streaked clouds in the pink sky.

 

"Only Lord Shiro has that authority," Lance pointed out, and swam to the front of Keith's board, resting his chin on it and letting his lips settle into a smirk as he wrapped his fingers around the edges of the board. "So... you can't really do anything to threaten me," Lance added slowly, then continued, "But it would be a real shame if this board started tipping."

 

"Don't you fucking dare," Keith hissed nervously, clutching the board. Lance wrenched one side of the board up and Keith shrieked, scrambling to get purchase. "Do it one more time, I _dare you_ ," Keith threatened darkly.

 

"Oops," Lance replied, tipping the board the other way. Keith's face was unadulterated terror- and Lance was loving every second. Keith glared at him, ripples of the motion fanning out across the water. "Okay, okay, I'll stop," Lance laughed, a glint in his eyes.

 

Seconds later, he slapped his muscled tail on the underside of the surfboard, sending Keith stumbling forward. Lance realized his mistake as Keith lost balance and came falling down, right on top of him.

 

The impact sent both boys plunging under the surface in a flurry of tiny bubbles. Lance winced- Keith had landed right on top of him. He opened his eyes gingerly, then gaped at Keith.

 

The teenager no longer looked upset. His body floated above Lance's, still and... _gorgeous_. His hair swirled around his head like a halo, and the angelic pink sky above him only made him look more ethereal. His pink lips parted, dark eyes wide. Lance felt his gills flutter nervously, and he noticed he was holding Keith by his biceps, keeping him close.

 

Flustered, Lance let go and nudged Keith up to the surface again, pausing a few seconds before surfacing too. Keith lifted himself onto the surfboard, briefly glancing back at Lance, who bobbed in the water beside him.

 

"I'm gonna... go home. You can come with me." Keith said. His face was flushed, but he was frowning.

 

Lance nodded, "I'll be out in a few minutes." He promptly dove underwater, gasping for oxygen as he gripped his head.

 

_What the fuck was that?_

 

...

 

"Shiro, I swear to god," Matt started, "You passed your drivers ed. class flawlessly in high school, why are you choking up now?"

 

"Matt, this is different! I'm not driving a car! I'm driving a plane! It's not like I'm meandering downtown, stopping for old ladies at stop lights! I'm taking off and trying not to yeet myself into the stratosphere!" Shiro threw his hands up, exasperated, then let them fall with a slap on his thighs. 

 

"I'm just saying," Matt said matter-of-factly, "It can't be that hard."

 

"I'd like to see _you_  try to fly a jet, genius," Shiro grumbled, snorting. They were sitting in the living room, Shiro's laptop in front of him as he leaned over his outstretched legs, reaching for his toes. He grunted as something in his back popped and he was able to wrap his hands around his sneakers. Matt was half-heartedly leaning over his knee, looking at Shiro's laptop that had a diagram of a plane on it, hundreds of arrows that labeled different parts.

 

"This looks way too confusing," Matt said tiredly, and flopped onto his stomach, wriggling closer to Shiro so he could close out of the picture of the plane.

 

"I was studying that!" Shiro protested, but Matt ignored him.

 

"Yeah, well I wanna watch Rick and Morty and you're the one who has to help me make breakfast so get off your flexible ass and come help me."

 

...

 

"We're back! I have Lance," Keith called as he entered the house, kicking off his shoes and hanging his keys on little hooks on the wall. Pidge, Matt, and Shiro's were there too, which meant that everyone was home.

 

"Just in time! We just finished the pancakes!" Pidge called giddily from the kitchen, followed by a manly belch from Matt. 

 

"Lovely," Keith muttered under his breath, walking into the kitchen. Lance followed behind him.

 

"That's alright!" Shiro said in a sing-song voice, "I'll make more!" Upon entering the kitchen, the two were hit by the warm smell of fresh pancakes and syrup. Pidge sat on the counter, Matt leaning on it beside them, and they both held white plates with maple syrup residue on them. Shiro was certainly a sight- a bright pink apron on over his plaid boxers, accompanied by white athletic socks and two spatulas. He'd just poured the batter onto a high-tech, fancy-looking griddle, and watched in interest as they sizzled into perfect circles. 

 

"Pancakes," Lance said slowly, eyes closing. "They smell delicious." He had no idea what they were, but he was already ready to eat about 15 of them. 

 

"Thank you, Lance," Shiro said airily, as if he was a world-famous chef looking down at Plebian customers. Pidge giggled uncharacteristically. "So," Shiro said, flipping two pancakes at a time, "Did you two meet up at the beach? I was planning on swinging by later, Lance, to pick you up, but I'm glad you got a ride already."

 

Keith hopped up onto a stool, nodding, "Yeah, I picked him up while I was surfing." He pulled out his phone, acting uninterested, but secretly glanced up at Lance every few seconds, who's eyes shone as he hovered behind Shiro, Master Chef. "I have to say, though," Keith said slowly, "It'd be nice if Lance could get his liscence soon. I'm not a chauffeur and he always gets sand on my seat," Keith wrinkled his nose.


	12. Flip-Phone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some klance interactions, driving lessons with Shiro, buying a phone...

“Sooo," Lance said casually, leaning against the doorframe of Keith's art studio, "About that painting." Keith didn't turn to look at Lance, doing his best to highlight the melting swirls of an ice cream cone on his canvas. Hyper-focused, Keith didn't reply. 

 

"Keith?" Sighing, Keith turned. Lance wasn't going to just go away like a normal person.

 

"What, Lance?" He said tiredly. It was late, 10 or 11 at night, and he really didn't have the energy to sort out all of his emotions right now.

 

Lance's face was alight with the soft rays of moonlight that flitted through the curtains of the studio. The hem of his shirt rode up above his low-waisted jeans, and his caramel brown skin was exposed. Keith looked away. "I wanted to know about that painting you offered, remember?"

 

Keith turned around to fully face Lance. "I didn't offer. You insisted." He crosses his arms.

 

"Well, whatever the case, are you still willing? I said I'd pay you." Lance's expression was serious, a rare occurrence.

 

"Fine," Keith said vaguely, flicking his hand to shoo Lance away.

 

Lance frowned, and flicked his hair out of his eyes. "Well if you're gonna be like that, maybe I don't want it after all."

 

Keith paused. His eyes drifted once again to Lance's stomach, wondering what shade of acrylic he could use for Lance's smooth skin. He blushed, involuntary, and shook his head, "No, seriously. I'll do it. Just let me know when you have a free few hours."

 

Lance smiled a little, "Now?"

 

The offer was tempting, but Keith was tired, and he realized he'd be up several more hours just getting the basic sketch done. "Tomorrow," he said finally.

 

Reluctant, Lance nodded, then said goodnight and headed to the staircase, up to the attic. Keith turned back to his canvas and sighed heavily. What the hell was he doing? The tide-like push and pull of his holed-up emotions tugged at his shirtsleeve, but he kept his brushstroke even, breathing in and out to the sound of the waves outside. Just keep everything in.

 

...

 

"Alright, Lance, take it slow. Reeeally slow." Tensing, Lance lightly rested his flip flop on the gas pedal, testing the sensitivity. The car tumbled beneath him, and he felt slightly disturbed at the destructive power he held in his hands, fingers wrapped around the steering wheel.

 

Lance put some more pressure on the pedal and the car lurched, then slowly began rolling forward. "Good," Shiro commented, surveying the empty parking lot they were in, behind a small Walmart complex. "Turn the wheel, then," Shiro added, and Lance complied nervously, turning the car in a loose circle. He heard his heart in his ears.

 

The inside of Shiro's car was cool from the summer heat, despite its black seats. Lance felt awkward and gangly with his long legs, but the seat was comfortable and Shiro's comforting words lessened his anxiety. That morning, Keith had insisted that Lance go out with Shiro to learn how to drive, as neither had work.

 

"You can go a little faster now- don't worry so much, you're not going to crash, just keep alert." Lance nodded tersely, trying to relax. "Once you've got the feel of things, let's do some laps."

 

Shiro was right. After he'd warmed up a little, he found that he actually liked driving, the little turns he could make with a slight shift, along side Shiro's encouragement. Understanding struck him when he realized that Keith must feel even better driving, on his motorcycle that is, because it was so open and agile. The dips and sway of the bike must be even better than the confines of the car. Lance smiled to himself unintentionally.

 

Time flew rather fast, and after about two hours of pulling through the parking lot through back roads and suburban lots, accompanied of course by Shiro's commentary on different rules of driving (i.e. turn signals, on-ramps, stop signs, traffic lights, and whatever else he could think of that Lance wouldn't understand), they stopped in the same lot they had began in to trade places.

 

Lance agreed that Shiro was a really good teacher, just like Matt had said. He was easy-going and kind, sort of like an older cousin or something. Lance had so much extended family, he really didn't know where Shiro would fit in his hypothetical human family.

 

The California driving laws entailed that Lance had to have a driving class, then pass the test to get a provisional permit, and then have 50 hours of driving to get an actual license.

 

First, Shiro had friends at the car dealership that would likely give Lance the lessons he needed, which solved problem number one. For number two, Shiro would drill Lance with information once he'd gone through his class to make sure that he'd pass the exam on the first go, which took care of that. And three, if Shiro and Lance did an hour of driving a day, they'd be done by the end of August.

 

Speaking of which, when would Lance have to leave? Shiro frowned slightly. Would he go back to the ocean after the summer? Shiro knew that personally, he felt a growing friendship with the mer, no matter how weird his backstory was, what withal the mermaid village and Council. Shiro made a mental note to ask Lance about it later- he didn't want to ruin the good mood.

 

"Oh, by the way," Shiro started as he and Lance stepped out of the car to switch places, "there are a few errands we actually need to run and if you want, you need a phone." Lance's eyes lit up. He'd learned about phones in school and now observed as every human seemed to have one, blank-faced at the illuminated screens.

 

Lance had been meaning to get one and had actually wanted to ask Shiro or Matt to look at theirs just to see how it worked, what it actually was, but he'd been too nervous to ask, not to mention busy. Pidge, though, had shown Lance a computer, and explained the internet to him. They said that a phone was basically a compact computer, but they had an old phone, which they called a flip-phone (as well as several explicits), which Lance could tell was old and clinging to life. Pidge said they had an emotional attachment to it though, so Lance didn't judge. Plus, Lance had been excited to see the clunky old phone- as he recognized it.

 

Back in the village, Hunk had a collection of human appliances, and Lance remembered seeing one of the phones before, though not quite understanding what it was at the time. As much as Lance goggled over the tiny screen and clicks buttons of Pidge's phone, he knew he preferred something like Keith's, a slim tablet like the rest of the group's.

 

"Yeah, that'd be nice," Lance said after a moment, slightly embarrassed at how he'd drifted off a bit.

 

"You can get anything you'd like, as long as you pay for it and you don't get a Samsung." Shiro leaned in closer to Lance, dark eyes serious, "I won't have you going to the dark side." Lance blinked.

 

...

 

"It's so cool!" Lance crooned, flopping over the console as Shiro sat down in the car, laughing to himself. Lance had settled on an iPhone after all, and had immediately found a light blue case with bling-y sparkles on it. Shiro had kind of let his inner-diva come out while Lance decided on a phone, making the two of them take selfies and buying Lance a coffee from the next door Starbucks while the mer signed paperwork.

 

"So shiny," Lance sighed, eyelashes fluttering. Shiro was trying to stifle laughter. Lance was too oblivious, too naive. It was adorable (in the most platonic way possible).

 

Shiro suddenly remembered something Keith had mentioned earlier that morning to Lance, and decided to ask, "By the way, Lance, is Keith painting you something?" Lance looked up from his screen abruptly at Keith's name.

 

"Yeah," he said slowly, thinking to their conversation the previous night. "I hope so. He said he would tonight," he added, shrugging. To be perfectly honest, Lance was very excited. Not necessarily for Keith's company, but more at the opportunity to understand the guy more. He felt like he hardly knew him.

 

Shiro smiled knowingly, "I hope so too." Being the dad-like, all-knowing queen he was, Shiro knew exactly what was going to happen between the two at some point or another. It was just a matter of time.


	13. Stay Still

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The painting chapter!! Get ready for some klance lol

"Okay, okay I get that public indecency is illegal, but this is a hypothetical situation. So would I technically go to jail?"

 

"Matt, I'm pretty sure that if you mooned your boss for firing you, she, one, wouldn't find it attractive at all, and two, would definitely call the cops."

 

"It's hypothetical!"

 

Lance snorted with laughter, and Keith even cracked a grin. The five of them sat around a bonfire on the beach, lounging in plastic chairs as the stars poked through the night sky above them. The sun had set an hour ago, and after dinner Shiro had decided to make a fire, just to prove to Matt that he could.

 

Now they were seated with long, metal, pronged forks, golden marshmallows on each point. Pidge had thrown away any and all techniques and was just shoving the fork into the fire, letting it burn for a second, and then smooshing it between the graham crackers and chocolate.

 

Lance felt woozy from the amount of s'mores he'd eaten, but they were so good, he couldn't help himself. All the while, Keith had been spending a good 6 minutes on a single marshmallow, moving around the fire for the perfect little oven to cook it. Shiro laughed at him- he and his superior dad powers could make the perfect mallow in mere seconds.

 

"Shiro," Lance called across the flames, "Are you looking for a relationship?" He was thinking about Allura.

 

"Woooah!" Shiro laughed suggestively, and Matt slapped his thighs.

 

Lance flushed in embarrassment, "Don't be a dick, I meant that I have a friend." He looked at Keith nervously, gauging his reaction. It was too dark to see, but if Lance had looked closer, he would've seen the slight relax in Keith's features as relief washed over the lines in his face.

 

"Oooh~," Matt commented, "who?" Shiro looked interested as well.

 

"Her name's Allura. She's a mer, of course, and she's seen you before."

 

"Allura," Shiro said, rolling the name over his tongue. He smiled to himself.

 

"Also, she's pretty much royalty- or the closest you can get to it in a community. Her dad is the chief elder of the council, so she'll be taking over soon."

 

Shiro nodded, "Well, if she's ever available, bring her up. I'd love to meet her. She can stay here, if Matt's alright with it." Blind date, check. Lance did a small victory dance in his head.

 

"Speaking of mers," Shiro said, "I know this is a tough subject, but when are you going home?" Lance blinked, and he saw Keith look up from the fire at the mention.

 

Reclining in his chair, Lance sighed heavily. "I really don't know, to be honest. Alfor never told me how long I was supposed to stay, he just wanted me to be up here until I had enough information. I didn't really know what I was getting into, to be honest. But, it wasn't like I was going to..." Lance paused nervously.

 

Keith leaned forward, "It wasn't like you were going to what?" Lance's face crumpled like paper, but he looked Keith straight in the eye, taking him off guard. Lance's deep blue eyes flashed with fire.

 

"It wasn't like I was going to let you die."

 

Keith's heart was racing, and he felt like everyone around the fire could hear it, over the flames, over the waves on the shore beside them, over the night breeze that trailed through his hair. Lance's skin was amber in the firelight, and his eyes were wide and serious. Keith didn't know if he could look away. "What?" he managed to say. Breaking out of his trace, he noticed that Shiro, Pidge, and Matt had all gone silent too.

 

Lance stood, feet sinking into the sand, eyes downcast.

 

"When a human sees a mer, the council finds out one way or another. Alfor has an odd ability to force you to speak truthfully, there's no way you can lie to him. Once it's been confirmed, the mer is banished and the human is," Lance gulped, looking down into the flames of the fire, "killed." He held his hands over the flames and fell silent.

 

Keith shifted uncomfortably, letting the meaning of Lance's sacrifice sink into his skin. Lance had left his home, the comfort of his village, the safety of the sea, felt the wrath of the mer community and put his own life at risk for Keith.

 

Matt seemed uncomfortable, and Keith watched as his eyes shifted around, trying to come up with something to say to break the fragile atmosphere. Slowly, the tension lessened, and they were able to start up a new conversation, but Keith was still reeling from Lance's words. Ordinarily, he'd paint his feelings away, but- Oh. That's it. He could paint his feelings away.

 

Keith looked to Lance and stretched, "Lance, do you want to do that painting thing now? I have time." Lance's eyes grew with excitement, and he nodded eagerly. Keith felt a shiver run down his spine. How was this going to play out?

 

...

 

Keith fidgeted at his stool, pencil in hand, staring at Lance. The mer was in his true form, his slick blue tail curved to accommodate the width of the room, sail raised to its full height. Keith could hear Lance's breathing from across the silent room, coming short and fast. Lance had mentioned that it was because his lungs were so small.

 

The transition leading up to this moment had been awkward, but worth it. In order for Lance to remain in his mer form, he had to stay in contact with water. As long as he was at least partially submerged, no matter how little water he touched, he wouldn't change back. So, Lance had changed in the bathtub, then kept his pointer finger submerged in a glass of water as Shiro carried him back to the art studio, then laid him on an old quilt as Keith positioned him into his desired pose.

 

Lance swirled his finger in the glass of water as Keith mixed tones on his palette, relaxed and comfortable. He lay on his stomach, head propped up by one hand, gills fluttering. Keith had thrown the double-doors to the beach open as a background. A cool breeze off the ocean left Lance with goosebumps, and the edge of the quilt flipped up and brushed against his damp skin. Shirtless, the air was cold upon contact with his shoulders, back, chest, as water droplets still clung to him. He felt water drip off the ends of his hair as it dried. He shivered.

 

Keith's breath was coming faster now too as he glanced at Lance over and over, matching and mixing colors with the tones of his beauty. pressing tan and brown and blue and silver over his palette, he smoothed down his hair.

 

"Stay still," he murmured, and Lance turned to him, expression neutral. Keith, perched on his stool, began the sketch, eyes flicking back and forth between Lance and his canvas. He didn't want to spend too long on it- some paintings took him days to finish. He guessed this one would take him 3 hours at the most, as he wasn't going into extreme detail at all. He decided to use an impasto painting style with oil paint, where he laid the paint thickly and 3D, even if it took some time to dry. The effect would make Lance's scales look more realistic, though, and he hoped that Lance would like it too.

 

Keith studied the curve of Lance's back, the way his shoulders arched and the small of his back lead to his tail, how his sail rose from his back, grew in height, and then declined to sink back into this midpoint of Lance's tail. He observed how scales merged into skin, how Lance could illuminate the stripes and spots and freckles.

 

The air had a light tension in it, but it didn't feel negative. Keith began to accept it as a good kind of tension as he sketched out Lance's back in pencil. He slowly started to feel his admiration for the beauty of the being before him connect to the actual individual, and soon all he could think of was how pretty Lance was.

 

Keith froze.

 

What?

 

Keith looked up from the sketch and stared, wide-eyed, at the mer. Lance's tail flicked up every few seconds, and sometimes his sail shivered or twitched. Lance himself did not face Keith (Keith explained that he couldn't paint faces well, so he'd paint the back of Lance's head, plus, then Lance wouldn't be staring back at him), and the breeze ruffled his drying hair. Keith's hands took over his canvas as he began painting, and he let himself slip into a trance, his favorite part of painting.

 

Lance's caramel skin streaked across the canvas, blending with the deep blue hues of his tail, the dozens of small scallops of paint that created his scales, a small brush creating the texture of his soft brown hair, and then long strokes of navy paint, dotted with white specks of stars that created the night sky. Keith lightened the aura around Lance's body on the canvas, and it created the image that he was glowing.

 

Keith paused. Lance was glowing. Something about having this surreal, flawless figure in front of him, something he'd never thought to be real... it took Keith's breath away. He wondered slowly, could other things be this real too? A love, maybe. A connection. Keith looked again at Lance. He couldn't stop.

 

An hour passed. And another. Neither spoke, and neither wanted to. The silence was peaceful, and the ocean provided enough white noise for both of them. Keith didn't notice that Lance's figure had slumped until he looked up from his canvas to study the structure of Lance's arms. He'd folded, resting his head on his forearms, and his eyes were closed. Keith smiled softly and pulled from his memory the form he wanted to finish up Lance's pose.

 

The rest of the painting was easier, the sand, the waves, and floorboards. Keith had included the glass of water on the canvas, even if it looked a bit odd, and he was surprised that even while Lance slept, he still remained in contact with the water.

 

It would take a good two days for the paint to fully dry, so he hoped Lance would be alright with that, but the finished product was pretty good, in Keith's opinion, and he was genuinely proud of the piece he'd done.

 

Now to wake Lance without startling him... Keith hopped down from the stool, noticing that his hands and clothes were covered in paint, and walked towards Lance slowly. He knelt beside the sleeping mer and leaned down.

 

Lance smelled like a flowery mix of cherry blossom bubble bath (one of Shiro's products) and salt water, and its light scent was nearly intoxicating. Lance's freckles glowed light blue, which Keith admired, and his long eyelashes kissed his cheeks. Keith watched the rise and fall of Lance's back, the smooth brown skin moving with his breath, and his eyes drifted towards Lance's sail.

 

The thin webbing that held the spines together was translucent, and upon a closer look, tiny spots of luminescence dotted the skin. Keith felt a sudden urge to touch the sail, and slowly, silently, he reached out and let his fingertips touch the sinewy skin. A jolt passed through his hand and he jerked back, but it only urged him on.

 

Keith reached out again and placed his hand against the first spine on Lance's back. Pressing gently, Keith moved down Lance's tail, smoothing down the sail like dominoes until it relaxed flat against Lance's tail. Satisfied, Keith looked back to Lance's face. He really was a deep sleeper, Keith confirmed to himself.

 

Lance's breath blew over a piece of hair that had fallen in front of his eyes, and Keith blinked hard. The sail had been one thing. Touching Lance's face... there was no guessing if he'd wake up at this. Steeling himself, Keith made up his mind. What other time would he be able to do this? Recognize this silent beauty? Lance still held resentment against Keith (or so Keith thought).

 

Keith reached out with one finger and slowly pushed the lock of hair out of Lance's face. His heart hammered in his chest.

 

And then Lance's eyes opened.

 

Keith heard his heartbeat roar in his ears as Lance slowly sat up, propping himself up with on hand, the other in the glass of water still. He didn't say anything. Neither did Keith. Lance's eyes were wide and slow-blinking, grogginess apparent. His lips were slightly parted, and his breath whistled through them softly.

 

Keith was frozen in place, stuck to the spot by Lance's giant blue eyes. Stubbornly, the lock of hair fell back in front of Lance's eyes, but this time, Keith was hesitant to push it back. He didn't move and was surprised when Lance looked down at Keith's hand, tilting his head to the side.

 

It all seemed so... primitive and awkward and weird, but Keith reached up again and gently pushed Lance's hair back again. The heel of his hand brushed against Lance's cheek, and the mer leaned into Keith's palm, eyes closing.

 

Keith was stuck to the spot. What was this? Lance couldn't possibly...?

 

Before he could think much more about it, Lance spoke in a soft, gravelly voice. "Bring me a robe, will you?" Keith stumbled to his feet, walking quickly to the bathroom to get it for Lance. His cheeks were hot and his mind was racing, but he focused on the task at hand, grabbing the robe from the door of the bathroom, fingers clutching the material as he tripped over his feet to get back to Lance.

 

Upon returning, Lance had sat up completely, pulling his tail in front of him, yawning. Keith handed Lance the fabric and stepped back, not quite sure what to do with himself. His eyes grew wide- seconds after Lance lifted his hand from the glass, the tip of his fin curled in on itself, losing its blue luster as the scales smoothed to mahogany skin. Lance hissed in pain as the tail split, and Keith looked away just in time as to not see anything R-rated, blushing profusely.

 

He heard the shuffle of fabric, and then the presence of Lance behind him. Keith turned slowly, and startled by how close Lance was. The mer was a few inches taller, so Lance had to tilt his chin to look down at Keith.

 

Keith's mouth went dry, and Lance brought his hands up to cup Keith's cheeks. They were shaking. Keith swore he could still see the light blue pulsing of his luminescence on his cheeks, and he had to blink a few times to see clearly again.

 

"As expected," Lance murmured, and Keith almost melted at the sound of his voice. Lance pulled away, smiled, and walked out the door, leaving Keith and his pounding heart standing in the middle of the studio.


	14. [intermission]

Hi, guys! Cal here. I'm sorry for the interruption- I'll move this chapter to the end of the book when I finish, I just have been getting a lot of questions about this book (my inspiration, why I chose the plots I did, what the actual fuck impasto painting is, etc.) so I'm making a small directory thing to explain some details for you. If you want to skip this, go right ahead, I just thought it would be an okay idea.  
  
  


**inspo.**

first off, the whole mermaid thing. I got my inspiration from a book series I used to love called Wings of Fire, actually. One of the types of dragons in it have markings that can light up:

So I thought, hey, Quintessence glows in Voltron, why don't I have mermaids have this glowy stuff that Zarkon wants that I can call Quintessence? And thus glowy lance was born  
  
  


Also, if any of you have read my other fic, Beat Drop, I got my inspiration for having the characters live in California from that (those guys live in Washington, but close enough lol). I don't actually live in CA, I live on the other side of the country in New Hampshire (where are you guys from? is anyone close?) but I've always loved California and I might even want to go to college there haha

Also, California is conveniently close to 1. South America and 2. the coast where the sub-group of the Dark Kingdom is located which you heard about in  _Overwhelm_ , I believe.

speaking of which, I have a map for you guys!!:

basically, the red is the dark kingdom (roughly, it's not actually that big lol, I've never been good with proportions) and the arrow leading to the section west of chile is the subgroup. this is the group that plans on attacking, and also the group that's with zarkon and lotor. ulaz and thace, if you remember, are going down to meet with lotor in secret  **here**. 

the orange dotted line is where the subgroup is planning on attacking, also where the BOM (blue, by Alaska) plans to intercept them. 

and that small grey dot is an exaggeratedly large version of the placement of Lance's village. I hope this helped a bit!

 

Moving on: the village!

I've been getting some questions about the homes, as well as Lance, Allura, and Hunk's hideout

I was envisioning the homes to be a bit like this (except underwater of course):

with multiple rooms and good furnishing lol

also! about the layout of the village, think of it as rows and columns of organized homes^^ your house number is your row and column location (i.e. 4B, 34T, etc). I'm pretty foggy myself on how many mers there actually are (I'm a terrible author, I know lol) but it's fairly small, generally about 600-700 people I think. 

next! I couldn't find any good pictures for the secret cove, but roughly imagine it like this:

 

small opening, very discrete, etc.

I also need to address: yes i know that it is highly unlikely that a village this close to the coast would be discovered immediately, but I tried to incorporate some variables for them that would allow this to be at least semi-plausible, as in the moving every few years, keeping guards everywhere, using organic materials in case of an emergency evacuation, etc.

I just really needed a way where Lance could have easy access to both land and the village, and it seemed like the best idea haha

anyways

details! 

I feel like I have to address lol:

THIS

 

is impasto painting :))

 

For couples!! Y'all know that Lance and Keith are gonna be a thing, and we know that Shiro and Allura are sneaking up too lol. However, I know that a lot of you are a fan of Shatt. So I'm proposing a poll.

If you want to see Shallura as the ultimate outcome, comment for it.

If you want to see Shatt as the ultimate outcome, comment for it as well.

I'll write it either way, I want to do whatever makes you guys happy, alright? So let me know :))

And of course, we've got Hunk and Shay

 

next on the agenda: 

The whole Klance predicament lol

I really want to have some time to really accentuate their relationship, grow on it just like the show has been doing for 5 seasons lol

It may be a slow romance, but I promise it'll be worth it 

If you've read my other fic you'll get this reference-  _There's a word for that. Soulmate._

And like, I know it's weird, but I really do think that Keith and Lance are meant to be together. If they aren't in the show, if the producers decide to make another ship canon, if the director decided that Klance isn't gonna happen, I'm not gonna be terribly upset because I know that I'll still be able to write and more and more fanart and fanfictions and whatnot will continue to bloom and be created, but I truly hope that these two amazing, developed characters will get their moment.

Anyways, I'm trying to mirror that in a way. We're all so excited and nervous for season 6 (12 DAYS!!!) I almost want the same thing to happen with this fic. The two characters have to be stable with themselves, and stable as a unit together, before they try to pursue a romantic relationship. I want to stay true to these characters as much as I can, so that means letting them grow together, learn from each other, have their moments and lean on each other. 

of course, since this is in fact a klance fic, klance is definitely gonna happen, and by then the tension between the two is gonna be so high, I hope it's gonna be like two magnets finally snapping together, two puzzle pieces fitting perfectly to finish the puzzle, but I hope you guys are okay with a little wait.

I promise, though, that they're gonna have cute angsty moments and fluffy smiles and really sweet moments, so don't give up on me yet <3

 

lastly, I want to give you guys the opportunities to ask me any questions you have! I'll answer everything in the comments in this chapter, and I'll make another intermission in a few more chapters to answer anything else that may come up

overall, i love you guys heart and soul. thank you thank you thank you <33

-love you!


	15. Milkshake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> lance and keith think about deep thoughts lol, and the group decides to go on a roadtrip! but on the way... they need some milkshakes lol

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> music for you: https://youtu.be/vuz_WXNqJCs

"And make sure you tell your boss that you're taking off until Monday!" Shiro called after Lance as the brunette walked into McDonald's for work. Lance waved over his shoulder as Shiro drove off. The "restaurant" was as stuffy as always, it felt as if his pores were being clogged just standing there, but as much as Lance would rather dive back down to the bottom of the frigid ocean than work, he needed this job.

Lance slipped into the "Employees Only" lounge and nodded to his fellow coworkers on break, eating fries and on their phones. Lance consciously felt his pocket for his own phone as he tied on his apron. He was working the window today, so he could already feel his voice slipping into the "happy worker" tone, high and happy. Lance rolled his eyes- it was _so fake_.

What Shiro had meant about taking time off had been relatively on-the-spot, the product of boredom in the house the previous day. Upon confiding in each other at dinner about the want to go away for a bit- it  _was_  summer after all- Keith brought up a vacation spot to the north, Bass Lake. About 5 hours away, Matt's van was suited to carry all of them to the resort. And so it was settled. Lance had never been camping before, of course, he didn't even know what it was, but he agreed to go anyways.

However, there was something else on Lance's mind. No, not something. Someone. A person- a him.  _Keith_. Since the night of the painting, the two hadn't had another interaction alone. It wasn't like they were avoiding each other (at least, for Lance it wasn't), they'd just been busy. The painting had dried, and when Keith had left it in Lance's room with a note that said "free of charge", Lance left $150 on Keith's pillow with one that said "it was my pleasure".

Little did Lance know, Keith had traced over the loops in Lance's handwriting with the tip of his finger, thinking to himself about their situation. Keith had grown up in a church town, with a bible that said "Man shall not lie with Man", and conservative grandparents. Of course his parents were supportive of him unconditionally, and he was sure they'd support him even if he was gay,  but something about that shun of his community was ingrained in his head, and he had flinched away from Lance's note when he remembered.

 _I'm not gay, I'm not gay, I'm not gay_ , he thought as he watched Lance across the table at breakfast surreptitiously, but his eyes traced over Lance's collarbone anyways. Fingernails biting into his palms, Keith excused himself, heart racing in confusion.

Lance, on the other hand, was just trying to adjust as best he could to the human world. He felt vulnerable when he was alone, like when Shiro had sent him to go get milk at the convenience store around the corner and he was nearly hit by a car when he didn't read the crossing sign right. He'd returned home shaken, but intact with the gallon of milk Shiro had requested.

Speaking of Shiro, their driving lessons were going well. Lance really felt like he was getting the hang of things. Sure, all the signs and signals and buttons were confusing, but Shiro was patient and calm and didn't freak out when Lance messed up. Shiro even said that Lance was a "fast learner", which Lance gushed over for an hour. Shiro was kind of like the older brother Lance wanted to make proud, and he pretty much found himself looking up to Shiro's leadership.

Snapping out of his trance, Lance dutifully took orders, served burgers and drinks, and sweat like crazy at his spot at the window, all the while with his smile plastered on.

...

"You guys are splitting money for gas," Matt groaned as he closed the trunk to his van, which was piled with 6 suitcases (Shiro took 2- one for his regular clothes, one for his makeup and and filming gear) and several smaller bags.

Lance bounced around giddily, excited to get moving. He was wearing his most camp-like apparel: cargo shorts, a top that was only  _slightly_  cropped, and a baseball cap. He'd let Shiro do some makeup too, and sported faux lashes and glossy lips.

Shiro walked out of the house as everyone piled into the car- Matt in the drivers seat, Keith and Lance in the two middle seats that had an aisle between them, and Pidge stretched out across the backseat, typing at her laptop furiously before they lost the WiFi signal. Shiro slid into the front seat, tossed Matt the minivan's keys, and flicked out his sunglasses.

As they rolled out of the driveway, Lance felt his excitement only grow, and he glanced over at Keith. Unsurprisingly, Keith looked neutral. At his feet, several sketchpads and drawing utensils, along with a gym bag that Lance knew contained his wetsuit. Strapped on top of the van was Keith's surfboard, even though he knew plenty well that there wouldn't be any waves at the lake. That was besides the point though- he liked to have his board with him, especially when he went out to draw early in the morning out on the water.

Though he didn't exactly show it, Keith was excited for the vacation. He'd been to Bass Lake with some of his coworkers before, which eventually led to drunken skinny dipping. He shivered at the memory, but hoped that this time around, he wouldn't have to strip into a freezing cold lake again.

Still, everyone was concerned about one thing: Lance. How was he supposed to enjoy this if he couldn't even go swimming with the rest of them? No one had asked Lance yet in fear of coming off as rude, but the four humans were worried about their friend.

...

"SWEEEEET CAROLINE, BAH BAH BAH, GOOD TIMES NEVER SEEMED SO GOOD~" The five belted out, laughing happily as the old song played out over the radio. Even Lance was learning the lyrics, and he hummed along loudly when he didn't know the words. It was 10 at night, about an hour away from Bass Lake, and they were all a bit stir crazy.

"LOOK!" Matt suddenly shrieked, slamming on the breaks. Everyone pitched forward at the sudden stop and Shiro hit Matt's arm with a crisp slap. Matt hissed, clutching his bicep in pain, but pointed to a sign on the side of the road.

_DINER_

"I bet they have milkshakes there," Matt said dumbly, then, "We're going in. To get milkshakes." Nobody questioned the decision.

Lance yawned loudly as he slouched out of the car, then stepped aside to let Pidge out too. The neon sign of the diner was almost too bright, but it was welcoming and seemed homey and friendly. As the five filed into the seat-yourself restaurant, soft jazz met their ears, and they immediately felt comfortable. Sitting at the counter on swivel-y, red stools, Shiro flagged down the seemingly only waitress. Lance smiled sweetly at her, ready to flirt.

Her black hair was pulled back in a white scrunchie, a cowlick curled on her forehead, and her eyes were large and dark brown. She wore a short apron over her checkered dress, and had a pen tucked behind her ear. "Good evening, my name's K, and I'll be serving you tonight. What can I get y'all?" Her voice was high and had a comforting southern drawl, something Keith leaned into. It'd been a while since he'd heard such a naturally thick accent, and he felt a pang of homesickness.

"We'll have five milkshakes, please," Matt said, then winked flirtatiously.

"Sure thing," K replied kindly, ignoring Matt's attempts, scribbling the order down on her notepad, "All vanilla?" Shiro and Lance requested chocolate, and Pidge asked for strawberry.

Chatting quietly as K worked on the shakes, Matt and Lance quietly debated what K's actual name was, glancing discreetly at her as they discussed. Lance finally gathered the courage to ask, and K turned sharply, then sighed inwardly. "Kaltenecker." Matt's face turned red in embarrassment.

Ashamed, Lance and Matt drank their shakes in silence, shrinking under Shiro's sharp eyes every time he looked back from complimenting K's lipstick or makeup. It was only when Keith groaned quietly that Shiro froze, mouth open. He turned slowly to Keith, then said in a calm, deadly voice, "Keith? Did you happen to forget something?" Keith's face went ashen, and he grinned guiltily. His milkshake was drained.

"Oh fuck," Matt's eyes widened.

"What?" Lance asked, genuinely worried.

"Keith's lactose intolerant," Shiro groaned, slapping his palm to his forehead. K smiled behind her hand, then whisked away to wash some dishes, leaving Shiro to scold a bloated Keith, who clutched his empty glass gleefully.


	16. Witchcraft

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the crew arrives at bass lake and decides to look around in one of the shops. it just happens to be a witchcraft shop AND two certain hcaracters make an appearance

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> music for you: https://youtu.be/pCXVxE_YeP4

"This place looks creepy as shit," Matt commented as the five stood outside the witchcraft shop.

"Well duh," Pidge replied, rolling their eyes.

Shiro stepped forward, "Let's just go in," and the group followed him into the dimly-lit shop.

They were in Oakhurst, a small town 15 minutes from Bass Lake. Last night, they'd arrived at Pines Resort, their hotel, which sat right on the lake, at around 11. Exhausted, they'd all collapsed into bed, not even bothering to unpack.

They had two rooms connected by a doorway, with four beds and a pullout couch that they'd rotate sleeping in. That morning, after an early state due to Shiro's obnoxious alarm clock, they'd gotten breakfast at the buffet in the resort, then headed out to explore Oakhurst by a recommendation from Keith.

It had been a little cold that early, but was warming up considerably and was now in the upper seventies. The rest of the week looked very hot, though, looking to be in the nineties every day. Thank god there was a vast, cool lake that they could swim in anytime.

Inside the (air-conditioned) witchcraft store, the scent of woodsy incense drifted over the group as they took in the interior decoration. Plants and herbs grew in pots around the shop and wind-chimes hung from the ceiling.

Shiro walked forward into a display room that contained large mineral rocks and crystals, smiling softly at the glittering gems, no doubt imagining them as eyeshadows.

Pidge bent down to examine the aroma-therapy candles, doubtful of their legitimacy, but shrugging because they smelled good anyways. Lance was, of course, drawn to the display case by the checkout counter that held jewelry with spiritual charms on them, delicate and beautiful.

Matt moseyed around the store, trailing his fingers over different odds and ends, picking up a stack of tarot cards. Drawing a random card from the deck, he squinted. "'The Moon'?" He read aloud. Someone's hand ghosted over his shoulder and he flinched, turning.

"Oh, sorry!" Bright purple eyes met his gaze, followed by musical laughter. "'The Moon'! It's the card of intuition and dreams," the young woman, assumably an employee, said excitedly, "Come here! I'll read your fortune!" She grabbed Matt's arm and led him over to a small nook with two cushions positioned across from each other, then sat. "I'm Romelle, by the way. And you are?"

Matt blinked, still a bit flustered from the surprise. He sat gingerly across from the girl, handing her the cards. "Matt," he said slowly, eyes running over Romelle's intricate pigtails and flowing clothing, identical to the clothes that hung on the walls around them.

Romelle eagerly began shuffling the cards, pulling Matt in with her hypnotic voice. Soon, he felt like he was just as invested in the tarot reading as she was, selecting cards and watching her shuffle, reshuffle, and flip them.

Unfortunately, several minutes later, just as Romelle was about to explain Matt's first card, she was startled by something she saw past Matt's shoulder. Standing abruptly, the cards dropped from her hands. Matt craned his head to look behind him.

A tall, muscular man with surprisingly long white hair stood, stone-faced. Matt scrambled to his feet. "What can i get for you, sir?" Romelle asked, and was it just Matt, or did she bow?

"Quartz, calcite, and sage, Romelle." The man requested, smiling slightly. Romelle hurried off to the mineral room, leaving Matt squinting at the strange man. Thankfully, Lance walked over to Matt, holding up two bracelets.

"Which one?" he asked, paying no mind to the white-haired man who was now examining an aloe plant. However, he looked up when Lance spoke, squinting.

Matt didn't have time to answer Lance before the strange man was face to face with Lance, backing him into a corner. Lance's face grew hot- he wasn't going to deny that the man- probably only a few years older than he was- was attractive. A glint in his eye led to a small smile from the man. "So you're the one," he tumbled in a low baritone. Something about him was off- and Lance would even venture to say vaguely mermaidian.

"Excuse me?" Lance managed to blurt. Seconds later, the stranger was stumbling back, having been pulled by a very annoyed-looking Shiro with Keith behind him, whose arms were crossed as he scowled at the man. Lance felt his heart beat happily- Keith to the rescue!

The stranger paused for a moment, glancing over Shiro, Keith, and Matt, gave a lingering look at Lance, and then walked briskly to the checkout counter where Romelle was wrapping twine around a bundle of sage. She packaged everything in a plastic ziplock, which Matt found very odd but didn't question. Matt also found it odd that Romelle didn't charge him, only waved goodbye when he exited the shop.

Before Matt could question it, however, Romelle was rushing to the back of the store and tackling Lance with a hug. "Lance! I can't believe it!" She cried happily, and it only took the mer a few seconds to recognize her.

As it turned out, Romelle used to be a mer, and even more, Allura's cousin. "The man with the white hair that you saw was Lotor," she explained, and Lance's jaw dropped.

"Dark Kingdom Lotor? The witch prince?"

"That's him!" Romelle conformed, "He's the one who changed me, y'know. The rumors are true about him. Not only that he changes mers, but also that he's against his father." Romelle seated herself on top of the counter, tucking her hair behind her ears. "Did he change you as well?"

Lance explained how he was on the mission to go undercover with the humans and learn about society in order to update the mers knowledge on humans. "Alfor was the one to suggest it, and I definitely prefer this over Keith dying and my exile." Romelle laughed while the humans looked at the two mers in horror.

"Speaking of Alfor, how's Allura?" Romelle asked anxiously.

"Well, she took over the village. Alfor left to join the front so she's in charge," Lance said, proud of his best friend. Last week when he'd gone to visit the village, Alfor wasn't there. He'd had to report to Allura and the council instead, and nearly broke out laughing a dozen times because of how hard Allura was trying to look serious.

"The front?" Romelle's eyebrows raised in worry.

"A sector of the Dark Kingdom is planning to attack near Costa Rica. Remember Ulaz and Thace? They went down to negotiate with Lotor about an alliance a few weeks ago, I think. I wonder how it went... anyways, the Blade and the soldiers from a lot of villages in the Pacific are coming to help the fight. Who knows, maybe I'll have to go down too."

Keith felt his heart tug at that. Leave? To fight in a war? Not Lance...

Romelle nodded seriously, clasping her hands. "We knew it was going to happen eventually. I just wish I could help."

Lance thought for a few seconds, "Well Ulaz and Thace did say that some mers from the Dark Kingdom could come on land. So if you see anyone fishy," Matt snorted at the pun, "be sure to call me." Lance wrote his phone number down on a pad of paper Romelle handed him.

"Absolutely," Romelle agreed, tucking the paper into her apron pocket. "By the way," she smiled hopefully, "Do you think Allura could come visit? Just for one day? I miss her so much and I'd love to see her. Plus, she must be stressed so I'm sure she could use a break."

Lance bit his lip, thinking, "I dunno. She's probably needed at the council, just in case anything happens, but maybe she could. I mean, I'm sure these guys would like to meet another mer," Lance gestured to his friends, who were distractedly looking around the store.

"I'll call her and see, then." Lance nodded when he remembered that Allura  _did_  in fact have a phone, kept in a waterproof Aqua Pac that was used for communication with her father and relatives.

"Let me know, alright?" Romelle nodded sincerely.


	17. Visitors

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the crew gets some special visitors from under the sea~~

It was Day 3 of Bass Lake, and each day had been better than the last. The group had pretty much stayed together, spending the first day in Oakhurst exploring, then the second day at the actual lake. There were many small tourist shops and even an ice cream shop on the docks, which Lance had never had before but thoroughly enjoyed.

Keith had secretly enjoyed the time he was spending with the mer and felt a sense of excitement when Lance's eyes lit up like a little kid when he saw something he liked. But still, every time he felt his heart slipping, he was reminded of his upbringing and snapped out of it, placing Lance back into the Strictly Friends category in his head.

It wasn't like Keith wanted to push Lance away, it was just the way he was- the way he'd always been. Even with Shiro, it was hard to open up sometimes. As an only child, he'd been sheltered by his parents and had never really gotten over the independence he'd needed to develop to prove that he'd be alright on his own.

Since then, Keith had tried to lean on other people, to be able to have a mutually supportive relationship, but every time he came close he got all passive and distant. Only Shiro really understood, and Matt and Pidge had learned not to push Keith when he got all closed up.

He  _was_ trying though. Letting his vulnerability show through that night of the painting was a huge step for him. Although he'd tortured himself about it the entire night, trying his best to just think about girls, girls, girls, his mind kept drifting back to Lance.

Even if he couldn't open up to Lance the way he could with Shiro at the moment, even if it would never happen, he'd decided that he could at least try to get along and support Lance as best he could. He didn't want to hurt Lance if the mer developed feelings for him though, so it was sort of a lose-lose situation.

Either he opened up to Lance as a friend and hurt him by denying him anything further or he distanced himself from Lance and rejected him. At the moment, he really couldn't see any other solution.

Still, the idea of Lance actually having feelings for Keith was a bit mind-boggling. Since he'd never opened up to boys, girls had always been the ones to approach him. The sad thing was, they usually had a pre-conceived idea of Keith as a dark, moody, beautiful teenager, and not who he really was.

Who he was... was hard to say. Keith didn't even really know who he was deep down. He guessed he was serious, introverted, smart if he went by the suggestion of his GPA. But other than that, he didn't really know. Maybe that's why he was so closed up. Maybe he had to find himself either way.

Keith sighed, rolling over on the bed. Matt and Pidge were playing some game on the TV, which they'd hardwired with an Xbox, waiting for Allura to drop off her stuff in her room so they could all go out for breakfast. Keith was interested in meeting her- especially if it meant that Shiro could finally find someone. Keith rolled off the bed and walked over to Matt and Pidge. "Got an extra controller?"

"SHE'S HERE!" Lance suddenly screeched from the other room, dropping his phone on the hotel bed and rushing to the door. "SHIRO, MAKE SURE YOUR FIRST IMPRESSION IS EXCELLENT!"

He didn't hear Shiro's response as he bolted down the stairs of the hotel, not bothering to wait for the elevator, and burst out into the lobby.

He could see Allura's tall, curvy form through the automatic sliding doors, and he grinned, powering through the entrance into his best friend's waiting arms.

"I see you're just as fast on land as you are swimming," Allura laughed happily as Lance hugged her tightly.

"Well duh," he mumbled into her hair, which was loose and natural, electric white and a perfect contrast against her skin.

"Well hello to you too," a sarcastic voice said from behind Allura. Lance froze.

"HUNK!" Lance plunged into Hunk's embrace too, grinning so wide he thought his cheeks would break.

"Now that's the welcome I wanted," Hunk chuckled warmly, patting Lance on the back.

Lance pulled back, surveying his two friends, "I'm so happy you guys came! This was so unexpected- Romelle called me last night to tell me you'd be here this morning, so I was pretty much caught by surprise."

Allura nodded, running her hands through her hair. "Yes, it was pretty much a split decision. I convinced the council that I should check in on you- I mean, you  _are_ the newest celebrity- and they said they'd only let me come with a guard. So I chose this guard," Allura pinched Hunk's cheeks, laughing.

Someone cleared their throat behind the group and Lance nudged Allura, grinning. "You must be Allura. May I take your bag?" Shiro looked manly and strong and handsome as fuck, and his gaze was locked on Allura, lips lifted into a hopeful smile.

The mer turned fully, pushing up her sunglasses to reveal her bright teal eyes, flecks of pink around the edges. Anyone else would think they were contacts, but Shiro knew for a fact they were her real eyes. She was wearing a long, flowy romper made with floral fabric, a deep v-neck cutting down her chest. Lance watched her look over Shiro, then crack a smile.

"I've got it," Allura said, hefting her two bags into her arms. Lance practically saw the cogs turning in Shiro's head. She was testing him. Insist to carry the bags, she'd be offended, let her carry them, she'd be insulted.

"At least let me carry one," Shiro said, holding out a hand. Bingo. Lance and Hunk exchanged a glance and watched as Allura handed Shiro one of her bags and they walked into the hotel together, chatting casually.

"Why does she need two big bags? You're only staying for two days," Lance asked, pointing to Hunk's tiny drawstring pack.

Hunk shrugged, smiling, "Romelle gave her, like, forty outfits and a couple hundred pounds of makeup. It's intense, man." Laughing between themselves, Lance and Hunk made their way to the hotel room as well.

...

"So you've all got the same stuff as Lance? He's not just a mer-freak?" Pidge asked, crunching down on their BLT.

Hunk nodded, counting on his fingers, "Gills, fins, sail... everything. Lance just has more luminescence, the glowy stuff."

Allura smiled sincerely, "That's why he's so fast." Lance blushed, flattered.

They were out to eat at a casual restaurant by the lake, sitting around a large table under an even larger umbrella, sharing two big baskets of fries and picking at their sandwiches. The noontime sun was hot and welcomed, and several tourists outside simply wore their bathing suits on the dock, as it was pretty much too hot for anything else.

The group's waiter approached the table to check in with them, but paused before leaving, "You know..." she said slowly, "If you guys are looking for something to do after lunch, the water's high enough at Angel Falls to jump off the waterfall, and the hike up isn't that bad. It won't be too crowded today, just a suggestion."

Matt's eyes went wide. "Jumping off a waterfall?" He looked at Shiro, eyes as wide as his plate, "Please, Dad?"

...

"There is no way in HELL I'm wearing the finger condoms, Allura. Nice try, though." Lance turned away in denial.

Allura sighed, "Lance, I've told you a million times. They're finger  _cots_. And they make it so you can go  _swimming_. Like a  _normal person_. And  _jump_  off the  _waterfall_. If putting a tiny little latex wrap over a single finger isn't worth it to you, then you've gotta problem with your priorities."

"They're awkward!" Lance protested, "Finger condoms!"

" _Cots_!" Hunk corrected from the bathroom, then stepping out with his swim trunks on. He'd tied a strip of fabric around his forehead to keep his hair out of his face, and was now pulling on a tank top. Lance crossed his arms over his chest.

"So... you  _don't_  wanna go swimming with us?" Allura's puppy-dog eyes were adorable, and finally, Lance gave in.

"Fine," he grumbled, snatching a little roll of latex from the box and slipping it into the pocket of his swim trunks, "Only for you guys, though. Just 'cause you're here."

The three exited the hotel room and walked downstairs, meeting the Holt's, Shiro, and Keith in the lobby. They were all wearing swim trunks and t-shirts of some kind, as well as sneakers for the 1-mile hike they had to climb to get to the small waterfall.

Shiro was reading a pamphlet on the Falls and looked up when the three mers arrived. "It says here that there are a lot of small swimming holes around the falls too, so when we get tired of jumping, we can go relax in one of them. The waitress was right- I asked the front desk and they said that it shouldn't be crowded. However," Shiro lowered his voice and gestured to the mers, "I still don't think you guys would be safe swimming, not in such an open place."

Allura held out the small box of finger cots. "No need to worry," she said matter-of-factly, "We have these. We'll be fine to swim."

Matt narrowed his eyes, confused. "We have to be  _completely_  submerged in water to turn. So if even one finger is dry, we won't change." He pointed to the box, "They're latex and skin-tight- no water will get through."

"It's a condom!" Pidge shrieked, face exploding in laughter. Several people who sat in lounge chairs across the lobby looked up, with expressions either of amusement or disgust.

Lance and Pidge struggled to keep from laughing, and Shiro just face-palmed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! I'm highkey feelin really sad- I'm going back and watching edits I've saved on instagram and just watching what klance was like back in the first seasons,,, remember when Keith saved Lance from the airlock? Remember when they had to climb up the elevator shaft together? Remember the bonding moment????? I miss THAT klance so much.
> 
> Not that I'm hating on the show at all- I love voltron irrevocably, and i'd support it even without klance, but I really miss the genuine interactions between Keith and Lance. They're such amazing characters and they've grown so much independently,, I really hope that we see them grow TOGETHER this next season bc honestly, I miss those moments so much. Maybe it's just pms but I'm getting really emotional about it lol do you guys know what i mean?
> 
> anyways, love you guuuuys~~


	18. Lo Siento

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the crew visits a waterfall, and lance has a panic attack,, who comes to the rescue?

"Matt, if you don't go, I'm gonna push you," Shiro said, sounding uncharacteristically mischievous.

"I'm going, I'm going!" Matt yelped, then gulped a breath of air and leaped forward, off the rock shelf, over the waterfall and into the water below with a splash. He surfaced within a few seconds, whipping his hair out of his face and grinning up at the rocks.

Everyone else was lined up on the rocks, waiting to get in. "How's the water?" Allura called down, and Matt flashed her thumbs-up.

"Cold as fuck!"

Allura laughed, behind Shiro. "I might have to push you, eh?" She said softly, leaning towards Shiro's ear. He shivered, feeling her palms soft on his shoulders. With a shove, Shiro was plummeting towards the water, yelling.

Allura doubled over in laughter and Pidge reached up for a high five. One by one, the remaining five jumped down into the water, the three mers remaining with legs, the latex cots secure on their pinky fingers.

Lance was okay at swimming with legs, even if it was a little awkward. He accidentally started a splash fight with Shiro that turned into a full out battle between the seven of them. It ended when Hunk pulled off his cot and splashed the entire group with a gigantic sweep of his wide-finned tail.

The markings on his cheeks glowed orange as he grinned in pride, having won the fight. Luckily, he'd saved his swim trunks, so when he changed back behind some rocks, he had clothes to change into.

From there, the group spread out towels along the shelf of a small swimming hole and laid down in a circle, talking loudly between themselves. Pidge romped through the water with Hunk, searching for "critters" in the water. They ended up finding a frog and naming him Punk, a mix of their names.

Lance sat back, watching everyone talking around him. He almost felt a bit bitter-sweet, and maybe he was just hormonal but he felt tears pricking his eyes. Here he was, surrounded by beautiful people. Humans and mers getting along and having fun together, sharing stories and relaxing. Why couldn't it always be like this? Why'd they have to hide?

There was no hate here. Yeah, Keith might be a little weird, and Pidge was questioning their gender, and Shiro was struggling to find the balance of flaunting androgyny and keeping his masculinity. Matt was just trying to find his place and Allura was taking over a whole village. Hunk just wanted to own a bakery, but they didn't have things like that under the sea.

And Lance? He had so many emotions going on in his heart, he didn't know how to feel. He felt like he was being pulled in hundreds of directions, paths he could take and decisions he need to make. Does he join the war effort and risk his life and his support for his family who needed him? Or did he stay home to take care of them and guarantee their safety? Did he even stay in the village? What if he asked Lotor to change him, just like Romelle? What was going to happen with his father? What was going to happen to his friends on land if he left, and his friends in the village if he stayed?

Lance winced. Looking around, he was suddenly overwhelmed. "Disculpen," he muttered, standing up. He didn't even register that he was speaking Spanish until he was rushing away from the group, followed by worried glances. That happened when he got overwhelmed- Spanish was his panic mode.

And suddenly Lance was on the trail, through the trees and he couldn't breath. His hands were shaking violently, and tears started falling down his cheeks.  _Panic attack, panic attack, panic attack_.  _Ataque de pánico_. What to do, what to do. Holding his head in his hands, Lance gasped for breath, heart pounding.

He hadn't had a panic attack in years, the last time he'd been swimming in a storm with his father and, after accidentally cutting himself on a sharp rock, he became terrified that a shark would smell the blood. His father had had to calm him down, trying anything to help, but it was ultimately Lance who had to find the strength to.

But why was it his job? Lance's teeth chattered and he sunk to the fallen foliage of the ground, heat of the sun beating down on him through the leaves of the trees overhead.  _Just calm down, Lance._ _Cálmate_ _._

Back at the swimming hole, Allura was worried, but she reassured the humans that Lance probably just needed to get in the shade for a while. Matt then got them into a conversation about if mers could get a sunburn and so on.

Keith sat on his towel, legs dangling into the water, thinking. He hadn't had a chance to tell Lance that they could only be friends, that it wasn't Lance's fault, Keith just knew that he couldn't have a relationship with a guy, it wasn't... It wasn't  _something._ He just didn't know what that something was. No matter how pretty or funny or odd Lance was, that something was holding Keith back.

And now that Lance was alone, it might be the best time to tell him. Keith stood, brushing off his swim trunks. "I'm gonna go check on Lance," he told Shiro quietly, then headed into the direction Lance went.

He'd only walked a few feet into the woods that lead to the trail when he heard something. Gasping. Heaving. Suddenly worried, Keith walked towards the noise. Deeper into the woods, away from the trail, a figure, several seconds later identifiable as Lance, was crouched on the ground. "Lance?" Keith called out.

He approached slowly until he saw that Lance was crying. Alarmed, Keith closed the distance between them and crouched in front of the mer. Lance was rocking back and forth on his heels, tears streaming down his face. His eyes were closed and his hands were clamped over his ears, shaking. "Lance?" Keith tried again, softer. Lance's breath came fast and hard, and his lips trembled. Keith reached out and laid a hand on his shoulder, making Lance jump.

His eyes were red from tears and his expression had crumpled, hopeless and honestly a bit afraid. "Lance, what's going on?" Keith said softly. Lance uncurled from his position and threw his arms around Keith's neck, sobbing.

The impact of Lance's weight nearly toppled Keith over, but he steadied himself, folding his legs under him as Lance cried. Keith noticed he was shivering, especially his hands so, ignoring of his previous mission of telling Lance his decision about their relationship- if they even had a semblance of one, even a friendship- he gently unwrapped Lance's arms from around his neck and instead pulled him into his chest, cradling him in the valley his crossed legs made, criss-cross applesauce.

"Shhh," Keith hushed softly, and enclosed the hand that wasn't supporting Lance's back around the brunette's shaking fists. "Talk to me," Keith hummed, resting his chin on Lance's head, which was odd because he was the one that was shorter than Lance.

For a minute or two, Lance couldn't talk, and just let out small, incoherent blubbers as he cried. At least his breathing slowed, though. After waiting for him to stop crying, Keith asked again, running the pad of his thumb over Lance's knuckles.

"Lo siento," Lance sputtered, coughing. "Normalmente no soy así." Keith smiled warily.

"What? Lance, I don't speak Spanish." Lance tried to smile, but he just ended up hiccuping.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly, "I'm not normally like this. Panic attack, that's what it was. I'm sorry. Lo siento."

Keith blinked. Lance? A panic attack? He'd never of guessed that Lance had anxiety. "Don't apologize," he said, and suddenly realized their position- him sitting on the ground, legs crossed, with Lance in his lap, face turned into Keith's bare chest. Oh, that's right. Keith blushed- they were both shirtless.

Lance's skin was unnaturally warm and very soft, and Keith could see peach fuzz on his lower stomach. He was still wearing that stupid finger condom on his pinky and his hair was still damp from the water.

Keith looked away. Why was he doing this? He came here to tell Lance he wasn't interested in anything, and now here he was cradling him in his arms, having some sort of bonding moment. Lance's blue eyes shone as he wiped the tears from his eyes.

Keith steeled himself. He had to tell Lance. This meant... He winced, forcing himself to think it. This meant nothing. This was just... this was...

"Lance, this was..." Keith started, determined. But Lance had looked up, and his blue, blue eyes pierced Keith's, so sad and deep. Keith glanced down and noticed that his hand was still over Lance's. He also noticed that Lance had stopped shaking.

And suddenly he couldn't bring himself to say it.


	19. Hard Feelings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> keith has to break something to lance, and it doesn't go over well

"No quiero amores, no vengas con tu traición~ Las penas yo las olvido con alcohol, solo yo la paso mejor!" Lance sang happily as he stood on the bed, holding a hairbrush as a microphone. The small UE roll speaker blasted the song, and the whole crew was sitting in the one hotel room, laughing and talking.

Ever since that afternoon, when Keith had helped Lance, held him, Lance was trying to reevaluate his feelings. He knew he was bi, he didn't need to be worried if he was starting to like Keith, but the idea was strange and unnatural. True, he'd initially been attracted to him that day when he saw Keith on the rock, but after Keith had seen his secret, then gave into agreeing to let Lance stay at the Holt's, everything had changed.

Originally, Lance didn't like Keith. At all. He was strange and quiet and moody and sensitive. And Lance was the opposite, loud and happy-go-lucky, or at least he tried to be. If he was really thinking about it, he was actually very guarded, and so it was just as hard for him to open up as it was for Keith, probably.

Lance hid his emotions behind a carefree, jokester facade while Keith suppressed them and pretended they didn't exist. Lance didn't know which method was worse. But whatever it was, he knew that after seeing the care in Keith's eyes today, Lance wanted to be someone Keith could open up to as well. To be honest, the situation had made him feel vulnerable to Keith, as the panic attack was a glimpse of Lance as his most hopeless, desperate self.

He'd been completely exposed, and Keith could've done anything else. He could've done nothing, called for someone else, or not even come at all. But instead, Keith had gathered Lance up in his arms and talked to him, comforting him the best he could.

Lance didn't know what that meant, he didn't know if Keith had any sort of feelings for him, but he was sure they could develop. After today, Lance wanted to see more of that side of Keith. His natural impulses. Lance wanted to open up more to Keith, and have Keith be able to lean on him too, and he'd be willing to work through whatever bad stigma he'd created for himself to show Keith that he was a good person, that he could support Keith. That he wouldn't judge.

Just as long as Keith was willing to as well.

The sounds of the party brought Lance back to reality and as a new song began, he starting singing again. A giant platter of cheese and crackers was on the other bed, and Allura and Hunk were devouring it. They didn't have stuff like this in the village, and it might be the last chance they'd be able to eat junk food in a while. Shiro had also presented them with Oreos.

Pidge and Matt were fidgeting around with a micro-drone, bumping it around the ceiling, and Keith was reclined the in the desk chair, occasionally mentioning things to Shiro, who sat on the floor next to him. He was studying some sort of plane diagram. Boring.

Keith looked up at Lance, frustrated. He needed to tell him, especially after what had happened today. After Lance had calmed down completely, they'd walked back to the group together, earning themselves a few confused looks but no questions.

Keith sighed, thinking over what he was going to say. " _I just want to tell you. I don't know if you were thinking this, but I need to let you know. I'm not gay. And I'm not looking for a relationship. I just want to surf and draw and go to school. I'm not gay. I know today in the woods must have been misleading, I'm sorry. I'm not gay. And the night of the painting, that was my fault too. I shouldn't have been so forward. I'm not gay. Don't take it personally. I'm not gay."_

Keith's jaw went slack. He noticed that he'd been staring at Lance. Lance was looking back at him. He looked away. And then he looked back at Lance, and as the mer was still staring, Keith stood. He motioned for Lance to follow him out onto the hotel room's balcony. Keith's heart was pounding but he didn't know why he was nervous. This was nothing to be nervous about. Lance just needed to know.

Lance stepped outside onto the tiny balcony and Keith closed the door behind them. They were still visible to their friends inside, but they couldn't hear each other's conversations.

The summer night was warm enough and a bit windy, and if Keith leaned out and looked up, he could see the stars. Keith'd always liked the stars. When he was little he had a constellation map on his door and followed the astrological aspect of horoscopes (how the positions of planets supposedly affected people).

He'd forgotten most of it over the years, but he could still point out the Big and Little Dipper, Orion, Cassiopeia, and others if he tried. It depended on the season, on how much Keith could remember. He still loved the stars, but sometimes they scared him, giving him a sense of agoraphobia. He guessed Lance could probably think of the ocean the same way. Keith leaned against the railing and sighed again, nervous.

"What's up?" Lance asked, curiosity in his light voice. He was wearing pajamas- flannel, plaid sweatpants and a white shirt with "philosophy" blocked over the chest. His hair was messily swept to the side and his blue eyes were like the ocean in the moonlight. Keith sighed.

"Lance... about earlier," he started, nervous.

"Oh! I meant to tell you earlier, about that, that I'm really appreciative of what you did for me. I guess I'm just stressed out, y'know? I don't usually have panic attacks like this, I haven't for a while anyways." Lance was rambling, but he felt himself smiling. Maybe this was the time to tell Keith that he wanted to pursue something with him, he wanted to have a support system, whatever that meant. He was willing.

Lance reckoned he could probably even fall for Keith, in  _that_ way. I mean, he wasn't  _that_ bad when he was in a good mood. He wasn't that bad at all. He was kind, even. "Nice" was a reach, but kind would do. Keith was a leader, something Lance wanted to be, and rational. Lance guessed that Keith probably had some sort of dry humor under his thick skin, and he wanted to find it. He wanted to trust Keith. He wanted Keith to trust him. If he was willing.

"No no no, I get it, it's fine. I just needed to tell you something, sort of about that. I don't blame you or anything for having a panic attack, I just..." Lance paused. Was Keith some sort of mind reader? Was he about to tell Lance that he was sorry for being a dick, that he really meant well, that he wanted to be closer?

"I..." Keith started, "need to tell you that whatever relationship you want to have with me, I don't want it. I don't want to be attached to you at all. It's not you, it's that when you leave, it'd be better for both of us if we had no strings attached."

Lance felt his smile drooping like a wilting flower. Like a dying anemone. He tried to ask "what?" but the word got stuck in his throat.

"I'm sorry. I must have been misleading."

"You... we can't even be friends?" Lance asked quietly. His hands began to shake. He felt his face grow hot with embarrassment and humiliation.

Keith shook his head. This was harder than he thought it'd be. "I don't want anything, Lance. That way, when you go back to your village, it'll be much easier for you to just forget about me. I don't even think it's wise for you to be friends with Shiro and Matt and Pidge. I'm doing this for you, Lance."

Lance's eyes went sharp, offended. His sadness and rejection twisted into defensive anger. "You think you know what's best for me, Keith? You're "doing what's right"? You think you can just come in here and tell me who I can and can't be with? That's not your place, Keith."

"It's what's best for  _us_ , Lance." Keith motioned to the hotel room, and Lance looked inside. He watched Shiro and the Holt's laughing, sunny smiles and happiness pouring from them. "I'm not selfish."

"You know what, Keith?" Lance turned back to him, tears filling his eyes. "It's not my fault that you can't open up. I wanted to help you. I wanted to support you. But something's wrong with you if you can't come to terms with yourself and see that the only thing you really need is to get over yourself."

Keith frowned. This wasn't going the way he wanted it to. "I saw some sort of kindness in your eyes today, but I guess I was wrong about you, Keith. I guess you really the kind of humans we hear about in the village.  _Blind_. It's not my fault that you're unhappy with yourself, Keith. Stop projecting it on me."

"I'm not projecting it on you!" Keith said loudly, "I'm trying to protect my friends."

"Your friends are my friends too. This world is my world too. You can't push me away just because I'm not like you, because you're scared of getting hurt."

"I'm not scared either! I'm not going to let some stupid mermaid come into my life and then leave me!" Keith stopped, biting the inside of his cheek. He hadn't meant to say that.

Lance backed away from Keith, tears pouring down his cheeks. "You're just afraid of getting hurt, Keith. Maybe I am just some mermaid, but you're the one who's stupid if you're just trying to protect yourself." Keith swore he could see Lance's freckles pulse blue, and stripes on the side of his neck- his gills, push through the skin of his neck, but as soon as Keith blinked and they were gone.

"Just leave me alone, Lance," Keith said quietly. He didn't want to fight. Lance turned around without a word and walked inside. Keith felt a tiny bit of himself that he couldn't admit to follow Lance back into the hotel room.

...

Hunk and Allura left the next day with Romelle. It was downcast, and by noon, raining. The group decided to go home instead of leaving the next morning- the mood was tense anyways.

The previous night, Lance went to bed early, even though he wasn't tired. Keith's rejection- the utter shutdown, was hard to swallow and he didn't sleep well anyways, constantly thinking about the way Keith had said: "I don't want to be attached to you at all".

It hurt more than it should have. Lance didn't know what it was, but he felt  _something_  towards Keith. The weird shiver that went up his spine when they touched, like when Keith pressed his thumb to Lance's sail and he felt a warm buzz down to his fin.

But that had all gone to shit now. Keith... didn't want that. So maybe Lance just needed to get the idea of Keith out of his head. It wasn't worth it.

So now, as the five stood huddled under a single umbrella in the pouring rain outside of their hotel, waiting for the valet to bring around the minivan, the whole mood was tense and awkward. Lance sneezed- it was a little cold out, and Shiro bumped his arm, muttering a "bless you".

Keith stood as far away from Lance as possible, even if it meant his shoulder was exposed to the rain. He'd been thinking about what he'd said the previous night, and he kept on trying to justify it. This was a good thing. He couldn't take it back anyways, so he resolved to just move on.

Lance definitely didn't look as bright to Keith, though. He didn't know why he was suddenly so concerned about the mer, but something was wrong with him. Keith tried to brush it off as the bad weather.

In an attempt to break the silence, Matt spoke up. "Lance, will you be okay? With the rain and all, I mean."

Lance startled a little, looking up. "Yeah," he murmured quietly, gazing at the grey storm clouds, "I'll be fine." He didn't know if he was still talking about the rain.

Shiro let Lance sit in the front seat, sensing a disturbance between Lance and Keith, so they wouldn't have to sit next to each other, and he could tell that Keith was at least a little bit grateful. He drew in his sketchbook for two hours, and when Shiro glanced over at the artwork, it was a messy, smudged drawing of Keith's parent's home in Texas.

The truth was, Keith wanted to go back now instead of in August. Not only would he get to see his family sooner, but he'd be able to give both Lance and him space, something he thought they needed.

And plus, the Texas air, the southern accents, his parents... that'd all help him clear his head.


	20. Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> keith thinks about a lotta stuff on the way over to texas, and has an odd encounter at the coffee shop

It was probably bad that Keith was taking so much time off work. And surfing. And working functionally in general. He felt cloudy- he couldn't concentrate. He hoped that his trip to Texas would help him clear his head, or at least let him come to terms with himself.

The day that the group had gotten back from Bass Lake, Lance had left for the Council. He had said it was because he needed to check in, but that didn't make sense- he'd spent the past few days with Allura, who was the leader of the Council now. But Keith didn't argue, and neither did anyone else. To be honest, Lance's absence was sort of a good thing. He stayed in the ocean for a few days, which was odd, and Keith didn't even see him before he left for Texas.

Apparently, Shiro and Allura had really hit it off. Shiro had told Keith that instead of going on his usual run this morning on the sand, Allura had surprised him at the ocean and they'd walked the length of the beach together. Keith could tell that Shiro was really falling for her.

To be honest, he wanted to tell Shiro that he should just get over Allura now. He'd saved himself from Lance, but what did Shiro expect? To have a normal relationship? With a mermaid? Not to mention, a queen-status mermaid who ran a underwater city? But Keith had refrained from saying anything- Shiro deserved a bit of happiness after all of his years of being single.

Now, as Keith stared out the window of the plane, it took a lot to keep his mind off of the mer. He was surprised that he'd gotten a plane ticket so soon. He'd had to pay a lot for it, but a spot had opened up in the third class sector of a plane heading to Texas, and he'd been able to buy it a few days prior.

Keith hadn't packed a lot- he still had some clothes at home he could wear, along with all his other necessities, as well as art supplies. His mother always stocked extras of everything when Keith came to visit, and she even rented their favorite movies.

Keith was closer with his mom than he was with his dad. It was probably because his father was an ex-Air Force Officer, and he still had that war living in him, making him a little bit more distant. Nate Kogane was a tall, kind man, who now worked as a firefighter after being discharged from the Force because of a stroke. Even still, Keith had a lot of good memories with his dad.

Krolia, Keith's mom, was a powerhouse. She used to be in the secret service, some top secret government protection job, but she couldn't tell Keith much about it except the fact that she was a fucking badass. Now, she worked as an editor for the local paper and taught a kickboxing class downtown.

Krolia and Nate got married straight out of college, and she'd gone with him overseas at the base he was stationed at (it happened to be Hawaii). They had Keith at the base, and then moved back to America after a few months when Nate was discharged. It was Nate who Shiro learned his love of planes from as the years went on.

It was actually surprising how well Nate and Shiro got along, and Shiro felt even more like a brother when he was at the Kogane's house. Shiro has been adorable as a little kid, and he cringed every time Keith reminded him. He'd tried to be so grown up, even as a short little 8 year-old. Shiro had broken down a few times, crying, before he told Keith that he was a foster child.

It was about 3 hours on the plane to the Texan airport, and then a bus ride for 20 minutes into the closest city, and then the last 20 minutes in an Uber, all to get to the big farmhouse Keith's parents lived in. True, the house was old, but it had been passed down in Nate's family for three generations, built by Keith's great-great-grandfather. It'd been renovated a few times, but mostly stayed the same general design and layout.

Keith loved it as much as he loved the shed beside it, which was his room. Fully furnished with his bed, a mini-fridge, TV, and anything else he needed, he and Shiro had made it a hangout spot in their childhood. Keith felt a bit sad that Shiro wasn't coming home with him for the week, but they'd be down again in the end of August before school started, that time driving.

Keith was anxious for that- the trip was 18 hours in the car, which meant an even 9 hours of driving for himself. As much as Keith loved driving his motorcycle, he wasn't as confident driving actual  _cars_. It was probably a bad thing.

...

Keith lugged his bag off the bus, thanked the driver, and walked into the small cafe, pulling out his phone to call an Uber. It was dark out, and he was tired. While he waited, he grabbed a coffee, and kept it black, then sat himself in a stool by the counter to wait.

He was looking at his phone, scrolling through Instagram, when something moved in his peripheral vision. Keith glanced up, then did a double-take. The boy who now sat two seats down from him smiled coyly. He was staring at Keith, leaning on his hand. Tousled brown hair that was shaved on the sides with long curls flopped over his forehead with big hazel eyes. Circle glasses framed his long lashes.

Keith felt heat rise to his cheeks. He blinked hard, then looked back at the boy, self-consciously running his hand through his hair. He realized how absurdly long it had gotten in the back and promised himself to ask his mom to cut it.

The boy, probably a few years older than Keith, grabbed a napkin from the counter and pulled a pen out of his shirt pocket. He scribbled something on the napkin, then casually slid it over to Keith.

_I seem to have lost my number. Can I have yours?_

Keith choked back surprise. A pick-up line. Just like Lance. The boy slid Keith the pen too, patiently waiting.

Keith smiled softly, then wrote down a number. It wasn't his own.

It was Lance's.

If he couldn't give Lance the kind of relationship he deserved, maybe this guy could.

Keith's Uber honked outside. He handed the boy back the number and smiled again, then walked outside without looking back. He was afraid he'd start hallucinating Lance sitting there instead of the stranger.

...

The first to greet Keith once the door to the farmhouse opened was Keith's giant dog, Yorak. The mixed husky looked alarmingly like a wolf, black with grey fur down his back and white over his face and chest. Keith was immediately knocked down by the force of Yorak, but he couldn't help but laugh as the dog licked his face frantically, whining.

"I missed you too, boy," Keith chuckled as he scratched Yorak's ears, picking himself up to actually enter the house. Having Yorak by your side was like having a giant, graceful fluffball who could knock down a bodybuilder with ease. Krolia was the one who'd found Yorak as a puppy on the side of the road and had brought him home when Keith was 15.

Keith had no idea why Yorak's name was so odd, but Krolia had found the puppy so she'd been the one to name him. (Plus, neither Keith or Nate were going to argue- Krolia could body slam both of them like a pro-wrestler if she wanted to, even though she never had.)

As soon as Keith had gotten up, he was almost knocked back down again, this time by none other than his mum, smelling like apple fritters (Nate was an excellent baker) and hay. Her sinewy arms, wrapped with muscles, were thrown around Keith's neck, and she was laughing, shouting at Nate to come outside, Keith's home. Keith felt his heart in his chest, swelling with happiness.

Finally home again.  _Real_  home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey guys- I'm trying to update as much as I can for you guys bc I'm gonna be gone at camp for two weeks in a week or so, so I'm trying to give you guys enough content lolol
> 
> I apologize for any errors, I'm still typing on my phone yikes. Umm are you guys excited for more Mama Kogane? She's gonna give Keith some super important advice next chapter to stay tuned ;)
> 
> We're also gonna be hearing from Lance, Hunk, and Allura next chapter, and we're gonna have a Matt POV in either next chapter or the chapter after that hehe
> 
> So yeah, I've gotta looooot planned so far, which is good. I also wanna thank you guys for sticking with me and my awful Spanish skills (google translate and I are having some troubles, obviously) it's amazing that even after four years of taking spanish class, I'm still absolute shit at it hahaha
> 
> Me llamo Cal. Me gusta escribo.
> 
> Idk guys <33
> 
> I hope you don't hate me too much bc of last chapter, but I promise it'll get better
> 
> Qotd: favorite (published) book?
> 
> For me, it's a TON but Carry On, Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda (aka Love Simon), Aristotle and Dante discover the secrets of the Universe, We Are the Ants, and a bunch of others. Have you guys heard of them? Also, do you have any suggestions?


	21. Distance Between

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> as keith and lance are apart, they both think over the previous few days. keith returns home to krolia and his dad, and lance to the sea

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> quick note- i want to apologize for not updating in so long! i just got back from a 2-week sleepaway camp with no phones or laptops or anything, so i haven't been able to update. ily ily thank you for understanding and for the continual support <3

Lance wandered along the sea floor slowly, hand out to illuminate his path. His other hand carried a woven basket, and he was filling it with clams for dinner. Hunk was somewhere nearby- Lance could hear the echo of his happy humming through the water.

Lance had been feeling off since Keith had talked to him. He tried not to show it too much, but familiar self-doubt and confidence issues were resurfacing from a few years ago, and he was constantly reminding himself of his validation as if that would make up for the hole Keith had left in Lance's heart.

It didn't help that Lance's father was off in the war effort with Ulaz and Thace, accompanied by Alfor, so Lance had to provide more for his family. He now had to swim home with Sebastian and Carmen after their summer camp every day. He didn't really mind though, he loved his siblings.

Elena was pushy, though, and was pushing and prodding at Lance to open up about what was going on. To be honest, Lance was seriously considering going into the war himself. After all, it felt like the war with the Dark Kingdom was more important than some silly experiment on land. 

But taking off like that could compromise Keith's safety- Alfor could turn his back on the agreement and have Keith killed. So Lance stayed put: Alfor wouldn't know if Lance stayed under for a few days so he surely couldn't punish Lance for a small break. Lance didn't want to go to the surface anyways.

As angry as Lance wanted to be at Keith, for being so insensitive and close-minded, he just felt sad. He really thought that he and Keith had had a chance, but now all of that was destroyed. Lance didn't even know if he wanted to stay in the house with Keith anymore.

Of course, he still wanted to hang out with Shiro and the Holts, but he didn't have to stay in the house with them just to interact with them. He could get an apartment or something (Shiro had said he had the means to) and hang out without Keith. How hard could it be?

Lance sighed, letting bubbles float up to the surface of the ocean, so far away. He didn't think he'd be able to leave Keith. Even if he'd been hurt. That cling, the need to be close to people, was what his father would call 'weak'.

Lance jerked slightly when he felt Hunk's hand on his shoulder. Hunk's eyes were dark underwater, but concerned even still. "You okay?" He asked.

Lance looked down at his basket- he had a good amount of clams. So did Hunk. "Yeah, I'm fine," he said slowly, "Let's drop these off at our homes and then go up to see Allura." Hunk nodded, then linked arms with Lance as they headed towards the residential area.

When the two then arrived at Allura's house (a series of large coves connected together to make rooms), it wasn't hard to find her. She was in the main room, humming to herself, twirling around. Her fan-like tail whisked through the water, illuminated and flowy.

Lance cleared his throat and Allura snapped to attention, realized who it was, and then broke down in giggles.  _Giggles._ "What's up with you?" Lance asked, vaguely disturbed by how lovey-dovey Allura was acting. She raked her thick hair up into a giant bun and invited Lance and Hunk to sit on a curved stone bench.

"Shiro told me I was beautiful," she said dreamily. Her face lit up when she said it.

Lance sighed, amused, "Really, now?" He lounged back on the stone, feeling soft kelp at his back.

"You weren't here yesterday when Allura snuck out of her Politics lesson and went up to the surface to see Shiro," Hunk chimed in, flipping his tail gently through the currents that flowed into the caves.

Allura smiled guiltily, and Lance gaped at her, "You  _skipped_ out of Politics? You got away from Coran?"

Allura pressed her palms together, "Hey now, Coran means well. It's not his fault he's a little senile."

"He's a little senile for a  _fourty-year-old_ ," Lance muttered.

Allura gushed over Shiro for a good 10 minutes and Lance interjected with little facts he knew himself about his friend, which only made Allura swoon more.

Lance's heart hurt a little less when he was with his friends, but as soon as he was alone again, swimming back to his home, did that crushing loneliness come back. He held it back.

...

Texas was warmer than California by a lot. It was humid, too, and it was supposed to thunderstorm later. Some of the citizens were racist and there was bad stigma about being gay and some families still had a patriarchy, but it was home. Because it was where Krolia and Nate and Yorak and their farmhouse were.

The family was politically active in their home state, so they were constantly fighting against the racists and homophobes and the president who wanted to separate immigrant families. Keith felt happy that they were so loud.

His father offered him a beer as they sat out on the porch, and Keith accepted it even though he wasn't really a fan of beer. Nate was, though, and Krolia too, so it was nice to share it. Nate smelled like the barbecue he'd worked over for an hour for their dinner, eventually presenting the best burgers Keith had ever tasted. Krolia was inside doing the dishes.

"So, son, how's it on the homefront?" Nate asked, patting Keith on the back.

Keith took a swig from his beer. "It's okay, Dad."

"Drawing? Surfing?" Nate guessed, and Keith nodded, looking at the scar over Nate's eyebrow.

"Same old, same old," Keith murmured. The sun was going down, unspectacular and without a flourish, and inky black night was beginning to spread from the East. Keith tried to clear his head.

A few minutes later, Krolia emerged and she sat down next to Keith, sandwiching him between his parents. She rubbed her thumb over her wedding band, something she did when she was thinking, and sighed, watching Yorak prance around the yard, trying to catch fireflies.

That day had been relaxed and calm- Keith had helped Krolia paint a table and assisted in washing Nate's car, an old convertible Saab that they both loved.

Keith hadn't talked much about himself, he tried to avoid it by talking about the Holt's and Shiro and how good the waves were. He didn't even mention Lance, he'd pretty sure the mer would kill him if anyone else knew the Secret.

He  _did_  bring up Allura and Hunk, playing them off as casual locals, and Krolia was pleased to hear that Shiro had found someone,  _finally._ That inevitably brought up the subject of Keith's own relationship status, the one thing he was trying to avoid.

"When are you gonna bring home a nice girl, Keith? I want to meet her!" Nate said loudly, and Keith forced a laugh. He didn't look at Krolia- she could see through any lie.

"I dunno, Dad," Keith said, "Maybe next time. Shiro and I are gonna come down in August sometime, so maybe then."

Krolia didn't say anything.

The three talked for another half an hour before Keith decided to go up to bed. He was legitimately tired, and he missed his bed.

Keith's room had stayed the same since he was about 17, when he'd painted the walls light grey. Several band posters hung on his walls, Nirvana and Panic! and MCR and Green Day. His first skateboard (not the one he brought to college) was propped up against his wall, spray-painted red with a robotic lion emblem on the bottom. Keith had spent hours out on it when he was a teenager, and it'd contributed to his love of surfboarding.

His bed was high off the floor, and under it were drawers of clothes so he didn't have a dresser. His ceiling had stars painted on it in glow-in-the-dark paint, and he'd specifically asked for his father to paint the actual constellations on it when he was little.

Over in the closet he had more clothes and other gear from his mountain-climbing phase from middle school. He'd never had the heart to throw it out. His alarm clock- covered in stickers from random tourist shops and such- had the same 7:00 alarm it had remained with since Keith'd left for college.

Keith sat down on his bed, stretching out his legs as he sunk into the duvet. It smelled like his mother's laundry detergent, blooming around him. Almost immediately, he felt his lids drooping and he had to remind himself that he had to change and brush his teeth before he could go to bed.

But after that, he swore he was asleep before his head even hit the pillow.


	22. Advice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> mama kogane gives keith some helpful advice on how to handle his emotions and feelings, and a new mindset is taken up

It was hard going back to the surface after all the days Lance had spent in the village, recovering from Keith and his fallout. He was definitely feeling a bit better, and he decided he was just being overdramatic when he thought about moving out. He loved his new friends. He wasn't going to let Keith ruin that, no matter what.

Shiro was waiting at the cove of rocks on the beach when Lance and Allura surfaced, and looked away as they changed into clothes from their satchels. Allura immediately tackled Shiro from behind once she'd changed, giggling. Lance still couldn't get over that.

"How are you, handsome man?" Allura cooed, and Shiro turned around and smiled, hugging Allura gently. He grinned at Lance over Allura's cocoa shoulder.

"I'm good," he replied, letting Allura go to hold her at arms-length, looking over her. He pushed her wild hair behind her ears and sighed. "Well, as much as I want to stay, I have to get Lance to work, and myself as well. I'll come down tonight, though, as usual," he told Allura, then gestured Lance towards the parking lot. Shiro quietly confided in Allura that she shouldn't have come all this way just to see him for a minute or two, but she said that she was doing it gladly.

Allura bit her lip, wringing her hands as she watched the two boys walk up the sand to the lot. She worried for Lance. Would he be okay with the messy Keith situation? She hoped so.

For everyone's sake, Lance needed to be okay.

...

Keith was in a mood. A shitty mood. It was his last day with his parents, as he'd be leaving the next morning, and he really didn't want to go. Whenever he was at home he felt relaxed and almost dissociative. It was nice, being disconnected, and he was able to do a lot of sketching, which he knew his art professor would be happy about.

Keith had tried to ignore the ache in his chest which he knew was caused by Lance, but he found himself sketching a mermaid on the rocks of a harbor in the latest hours of the night. He missed the ocean. He missed what- no,  _who_  was in the ocean, even if he didn't want to admit it.

Lance had always been an incessant texter, and it was mainly the reason why Keith had his number memorized. Keith rarely put contact names to numbers in his phone, so he had to recognize the digits when he got texts. Lance had always been texting him something stupid or weird or questions about basic "human things".

The texts had annoyed Keith before, but now he kind of missed them. He tried not to think about it. Just like everything else about Lance.

Keith knew that Krolia knew that something was up. Mother's sense or something. He didn't expect her to do anything about it, so he was surprised when she brought it up that night.

Keith was sitting on his bed, reading a book, when he heard a knock at his door. "Come in," he called out, bookmarking his spot. He was reading a murder mystery novel by Dana Chambers. He was into that stuff, thriller books and conspiracy theories. He liked having to think about it.

Krolia peeked her head into the room, then slipped in and close the door gently behind her. "Scooch over," she said, clambering up onto Keith's bed. She was in sweatpants and a tank top with her gym's name across the chest.

Keith stared at her as she fidgeted, patiently waiting for her to say what she needed to (she obviously wanted to say something).

"Look, Keith," she started, "I couldn't help but notice something the other day."

Keith racked his brain for something he'd said. Did his mother somehow find out about Lance's secret? He started to panic, and of course Krolia noticed.

"Oh, honey, calm down. It's not that bad, I promise. Please. Seriously." She smiled at him reassuringly, patting his knee. "When your father mentioned how you've never brought home a girlfriend before, I couldn't help but think, maybe..."

Keith froze. Stiffened. Krolia was bringing up the one thing he'd been trying to avoid thinking about for the past week, and she was talking about it like it was the most natural thing in the world.

"It almost feels like you're shielding something. I'm right, right?"

He wanted to shake his head and deny it. But would that really help?

"His name's Lance." Krolia nodded, and slung her arm around Keith's shoulders, tucking him into the crook of her arm, and suddenly, he was telling her everything, all except The Secret. Lance's mer secret.

He told her about how good Lance looked in heels. How he had stupid humor that contradicted Keith's dry jokes, and how he pretty much laughed at everything anyways. How Keith was pretty sure Lance was deeper and smarter than he let on, but he'd never show it. How Lance's freckles were cute and he was more beautiful than hot, and how Keith got a shock up his arm when he first touched Lance. How Lance loved his friends and how easily he fit in but had some sort of insecurity Keith hadn't figured out yet.

"So what's keeping you from him, sweetpea? Why don't you just tell him how you feel?" Krolia knew it wasn't that simple, especially for her son, but she asked anyways.

Keith raked a hand through his hair (which was about an inch shorter thanks to Krolia's odd expertise in hair-cutting). "It's not that easy, mom. Something like that has always had that kind of stigma. It's always been..."

"Bad? Keith, honey, not at all. I dated girls when I was your age, plenty of them."

Keith looked at his mom in shock. "What?" He asked, incredulous.

Krolia laughed quietly, "Yep, believe it or not. It's not that different from dating the opposite gender, Keith. We could do each other's hair and we got our periods in sync so we could buy ice cream at the same time."

Keith cringed, "Ew, Mom. Gross."

"What? It's true. Look Keith, it doesn't matter what you think you've been taught. The truth is, your perception isn't true. It doesn't matter what people say, what people  _have_  said. None of that matters.  _You_ matter and your happiness matters. And if boys-"

"Just Lance."

"And if  _Lance_ makes you happy then you should forget the bullshit and judgement and preconceived ideas and just  _be happy_." Krolia only swore when she was serious.

Keith swallowed, hard, staring at his duvet, biting his lip. Krolia was telling the whole-ass truth, he knew. And he knew she was right about telling Lance how he felt.

"How do I know if he'd even reconsider me after the shit I pulled on him?" Keith mumbled.

Krolia laughed. "That's when you learn to grovel, sweetie. Sounds like Lance is the kind of guy who'll take you back if you put in the effort. I think if you really show him what you're made of, he'll see it. Just don't try too hard. That's annoying."

Keith snorted, "Mom, it's  _Lance._ He's more high-maintenance than Shiro, and Shiro has probably tried every single eyeliner that's come out this year. Speaking of which, he and Lance get along well- Lance is into makeup too."

"Get him the Urban Decay Naked eyeshadow palette, then." Oddly specific. "All the high-strung soccer mommies who go to the gym to power walk love that palette. Maybe even offer to let him give you a makeover," Krolia suggested, twirling a piece of Keith's hair between her fingers.

Keith knew how much Krolia hated those preppy women, and she'd said she'd gladly roundhouse kick their asses right back home if they ever gave her a single shit about being a kickboxer.

Krolia was beautiful in her own strong, independent way, and the only man she'd ever let herself depend on was Nate, and even  _he_  was a bit of a lightweight. Krolia was the most hardcore, inspiring woman Keith had ever known.

And if she was giving him advice, he sure as hell was gonna take it.

Keith sat up, "Well then, Mom, I guess I have something I need to tell you." He tried to look as serious as possible.

"I'm Lancesexual. I sexually identify as someone who's attracted to Lance."

Krolia was only able to keep her face straight for a millisecond before she and Keith broke out into laughter, collapsing onto the bed in fits of giggles.

And Keith felt a weight lift off his chest, and the tug of his heart towards Lance.

...

  
_Matt_

Shiro and I have been friends for years. I don't know quite when we started getting along so well, but I know it was seamless. I feel like maybe we were supposed to be friends in the grand scheme of things, like two of our atoms were close together in the Big Bang. I'm not sure, that sounds crazy now that I think about it.

Shiro has this feeling- an aura, even- of leadership. He always knows what he's doing, and even if he doesn't, he's so good at faking it that you'd never know.

True, I'm not Keith, so I don't know if Shiro would think of me in "best friend territory", but that's the thing. I don't think of Shiro in a best friend way, either. I don't know if I ever have.

In my life, there's mostly controlled variables- things, places, people, who stay the same.

Shiro is my dependent variable- what I observe. What changes. He's always been like that. I've always wanted it. He's the key to my concept, the whole point. I don't think I'd know what to do without him.

When I found his makeup and he told me he was androgynous. When we went to Pride and he told me he was Pan. When we met Allura and he told me he thought he liked her. Through all of those, I've supported him. I haven't wavered. The same old controlled variable in his life, regardless of my own feelings.

It never mattered to me. I was Shiro's Matt. Just his friend. A shoulder to lean on- as long as I could be near him, my emotions were obsolete.

It wasn't like he didn't care, of course he did, but there was something deeper than that, for me.

Because lately, I've been wanting to tell him. Break the tension. Tell my secret.

Tell my dependent variable that the independent variable- the thing that's changed- is that I'm in love with him.


	23. Coffee Treaty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> keith attempts to patch things up between him and lance with coffee, and lance can't help but give in a little bit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> at the end of this chapter, i'm including a little q&a with questions from readers over on wattpad <3 if you have any more questions for me, feel free to ask them and i'll include my answers in future chapters~

Keith got home late the next day. That morning, Keith had told his dad about Lance, how he wanted to be with him. Surprisingly, Nate had been excited. "Finally! I can't wait to meet him," he'd said. He also mumbled something about accepting Keith and supporting his decision, but by then Krolia had turned on the blender for her smoothie and Nate's words were drowned out. Keith appreciated it, though, and his dad had hugged him so hard he thought his ribs might actually break.

They'd then driven Keith to the airport and, with a teary goodbye, sent him off, back to California and back to Lance. Krolia had taken Keith aside and made him promise that he'd pursue Lance, and not give up. He promised. He wanted to.

The traffic back to their city wasn't that bad, considering how packed it normally was, and Keith got home a little after 10. The street that the Holt house was on was quiet, and most of the homes had all their lights out. The gravel of the driveways was actually crushed white seashells, which added a pretty aesthetic.

As Keith pulled into the driveway with his motorcycle, he smiled softly. His surfboard was still propped up against the wall of the garage and the sound of waves was calling to him. It was hard not to drop everything and run to the ocean, sit on the surf with his board and look over the night sky.

Instead, he hefted his bag, which had been stored under the seat of his bike, into his arms and trudged up to the porch. After digging around in his pockets for the key, he let himself inside and quietly dropped his bag in the foyer. He'd unpack tomorrow when he woke up- he was too tired now.

Upon walking into the living room, Keith noticed Pidge at their computer, typing away. With anyone else, he would've been more cautious as to not surprise them, but it was virtually impossible to startle Pidge.

"Hey," Keith sighed, flopping onto the couch. Pidge paused, looking back at Keith.

"Hi, how was the trip?" Keith flashed them thumbs-up. He almost wanted to tell Pidge about Lance, but decided against it. Shiro would be pissed if Keith told anyone before him.

"That's good," Pidge commented, resuming typing.

"Is everyone home?" Keith didn't know what he'd do if Lance was actually there.

"Shiro and Matt are sleeping. Lance just went to work, he'll be home at midnight," Pidge informed him dutifully.

Nodding, Keith yawned. "Thanks," he mumbled, then said goodnight and walked into the hallway. The door to the basement, where his room was, was on his right, and the stairs leading upstairs, to everyone else's rooms, was straight ahead. Keith glanced backwards to see that Pidge wasn't watching, and then padded up the stairs.

The ladder that led up to the attic was propped up against the wall, and Keith steeled himself before climbing up and pushing the hatch open.

Lance's room in the attic smelled like seafoam and incense, thanks to Romelle. It was a fairly large room, to be honest, and the walls slanted up into the triangle of the roof. Keith looked around, then slowly sat on Lance's bed.

This was Lance. The dirty clothes on the floor, the makeup on the dresser, the satchel on the bedpost. Lance was messy and beautiful and everywhere, all over this room. Keith wanted to sleep in the bed and smell Lance on the sheets, but he decided against it, obviously.

Instead, he got up and walked to the circular window that overlooked the beach, and exhaled deeply, lifting up some dust that had settled on the sill. He was really gonna have to put in effort to repay for the shit he pulled on Lance.

...

Someone was knocking on the hatch of the attic. Lance groaned, opening his eyes. "What?" He called out, slumping out of bed and pulling his blanket around himself like a cape.

"Lance? Can you open up?" Lance grimaced. What the shit? That was Keith's voice. Lance yanked open the hatch reluctantly.

Keith was standing below, holding two mugs of coffee on a tray. "Lance, please come down, I want to apologize." Lance promptly closed the door.

"I don't want to hear it," Lance snapped, muffled from the other side of the hatch.

"Remember how I helped you at the waterfall?" Keith struggled for words, "W-We had a bonding moment! I cradled you in my arms!" He spluttered, desperate.

The hatch was suddenly wrenched open again. Lance eyed the coffee, then looked down at Keith. There it was again, his gills and blue freckles showing through his skin. Putting as much venom as possible into his words, Lance leaned forward, angry and hurt. "Nope, don't remember, didn't happen," he said cooly, then shut the hatch on Keith, who was left still holding the two mugs of coffee below.

For the next week, Keith made Lance coffee every morning, and tried to talk to him every chance he could. Lance mostly didn't respond, and if he did it was in short answers, but Keith still tried to make conversation, reminding himself of his promise to his mother.

Little by little, Keith allowed himself to watch the little things Lance did that he could admire. A few days later, he sat at the kitchen table, waiting with two steaming mugs of coffee, for Lance to come downstairs, and he felt his cheeks heat up when Lance came down shirtless, the waistband of his boxers riding up above his flannel sweatpants.

Lance had freckles everywhere, clustered at his shoulders, cheeks, elbows, and knees, and Keith admired them as Lance rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and ruffled his hands through his bedhead. He scowled at Keith when he caught him staring and made a point to make himself coffee instead of taking the one Keith had made him.

"Good morning, Lance," Keith said, "Sleep well?"

"Fuck off," Lance replied tersely, narrowing his eyes. "I don't know why you're doing this, you made it very clear that you wanted nothing to do with me."

Keith sighed, grimacing. "I know. And I'm sorry. I fucked up. But I'm trying to make it up to you, I really am. I want... I want to talk to you, Lance. I want to get to know you. I want," he bit his lip, "to be with you."

Lance hesitated. This was way too confusing. First Keith was telling him to stay away, and now he wanted to have  _something_ , whatever it was, with Lance? "Make up your mind, Mullet," Lance grumbled, walking out of the kitchen. He wasn't as mad as he was before, though, and he didn't know what it meant.

The other housemates found the whole thing amusing. Shiro thought that the two would be a "complimentary couple", Matt just wanted to make fun of them, and Pidge was fine with whatever the two decided as long as they weren't constantly PDA-ing, which made Keith blush because 'Lance and I aren't even dating!'

Keith had talked with Shiro the morning after he'd gotten back from Texas, and Shiro hadn't really been surprised. "I don't care if you're gay, straight, trans, non-binary, cis, whatever. You're Keith, no matter what you identify as. And I support you if you want to be with Lance. To be honest, I kind of knew you were gay, but it was up to you to figure it out yourself. I'm here for you." He'd then interrupted his whole heartwarming speech by asking if he could do Keith's eyeliner, but they laughed over it anyways.

A week and two days after Keith had gotten home, after 9 cups of coffee left under the attic's hatch, Lance accepted the coffee. Keith's smile spread wider than he thought it could when he saw that Lance had taken it, and he realized that this meant that Lance had also read the note that he'd left with it every morning.

Usually Keith came upstairs after an hour of leaving the coffee under the hatch to collect the then-cold mug, but this time, and empty cup was left and the note was gone. Which only meant one thing- Lance had given in, and maybe even forgiven Keith.

Little did Keith know, Lance was upstairs, sitting on his bed, holding the note as he contemplated the contents. The coffee had been good. Really good. He guessed that being a barista a Starbucks had paid off for Keith, because the caramel tones in the smooth macchiato had been blended perfectly.

As for the note... Lance hadn't even known that there was a slip of paper under the mug until he lifted it. It was a strip of paper, Keith's big, curly handwriting scrawled across it in neat lines.

_Lance, I'm sorry for being an asshole. You didn't deserve that at all, I know. I snapped at you only because I was scared. I don't like it when things change, especially things about myself. So I kind of disregarded the fact that I liked you and punished myself, and you, because of it. I didn't mean it. I talked to my mom when I went home to Texas, and she told me that I should pursue the things that make me happy. And I think that you could make me happy. And I could make you happy if you let me. Please think about it, even if it's just being friends._   
_-Keith_

Lance felt so confused. What was this? Was Keith seriously...?

...

How are you guys? Ready for the Q&A?

**[shibestarr](https://www.wattpad.com/user/shibestarr) ** **: do you have any writing tips? as in do you think using big words or blunt words are better in a story, or is there a way to make a story give off a certain feel when you're reading it? (etc)**

First off, I have a grammar book (Cal's tips n tricks) on wattpad with a lot of my writing tips n tricks (obviously lolol) and i'll be posting it on archive asap! I update it a bunch with little mini-lessons and writing devises I use. As for big and blunt words, I think there's an appropriate use for both.

I tend to use big words when I'm describing places, people, events, and use blunt words for describing emotions.

So, for example, if I described a carnival, I'd use words like spectacular or marvelous, stuff like that, and make it big paragraphs with lots of description.

But if I wanted to paint a really sad scene, I'd use short sentences (and sentence fragments) to make it more lifelike. Do we really think in full, literate ways when something negative happens to us?

"All he knew was that it hurt. Inside and outside. White hot pain."

Stuff like that, you get me?

And to give your writing a certain feel, I suggest using adjectives and actions that sound happy or sad or nervous, or whatever feeling you're trying to relay. Also, when I'm listening to a happy song, I tend to write happier content, and the same with sad songs I guess.

I hope this helped!

**[Artistic_Author](https://www.wattpad.com/user/Artistic_Author) ** **: What is your favorite Voltron au?**

That's pretty hard to say. I'm a bit ashamed to say that I don't read a lot of klance content, just because I'm always way too busy and I can never get myself to finish them, but right now I'm reading the famous Dirty Laundry. It's really good so far, and I really enjoy the writing style. I guess I'm reading it so I know what to look for to keep you guys happy with my content? I can only dream of having one of my fics being as amazing as that- the Holy Grail of Klance fanfiction haha.

As for general AUs, as you all know I love mer!Lance and other variations, but i also adore Altean!Lance and FullGalra!Keith aus, and I've seen a few before where Lance is a prince, which I love.

And of course, plain old realistic AUs, where they're just teenagers on earth are amazing.

I really will read anything if the plot is interesting and the grammar is solid :)

 **[Sharpshooter_Blue](https://www.wattpad.com/user/Sharpshooter_Blue)**   **: Who's your favorite character to write about? Why do you want my babes (Matt and Lance) to suffer?**

My favorite character in general is Lance, I've loved him since season one haha, so I guess he's my favorite character to write about? I think he's a very layered character and I can't wait to see him open up more in season 7 :)

As for Matt and Lance, yes I know, I've kinda put them through shit. BUT I have an explanation. In Matt's case, he and Shiro are very close, and that means a lot to Matt. He'd never want to do anything that would distance or separate the two of them, so he refrains from telling Shiro about his feelings for that reason.

As for Lance- he's pretty overwhelmed with everything right now, as you saw in Lo Siento, but I strongly believe that characters need to develop themselves, and mature and grow as themselves before they can commit to a relationship. It's really important to me to have character development because that's so true with the actual show. I want Lance to be as realistic as possible, and that includes him being sensitive and having self-esteem issues. But I promise, he'll be a happy bean in a chapter or two :))

 **[TheAlmostAuthor](https://www.wattpad.com/user/TheAlmostAuthor)**   **: What's your favorite Voltron au and why? Who's your favorite and least favorite character to write about (and why)? Will Klance be a slow burner like you did in your last book?**

As I already answered your first 1 1/2 questions in other answers, I'll start with my least favorite character to write about. I'd have to say... Pidge. This isn't hate on Pidge, I love them!! But it's always kind of hard for me to write about their character because I always see them as trans or non-binary and I get some criticism for that because it's not canon :( idk, I just get that vibes from them, even if it's not in the show. Also, Pidge is really really smart and also really really sassy and wonderful, so I'm always afraid that I'm not portraying them right in my writing. I love Pidge though, don't get me wrong :)

As for a slow burning Klance~ YES, like beat drop, this has taken a while. I mean, this is what, chapter 22? And we're just getting into the action? I know that must be frustrating for you guys, and I'm sorry about that, but as I said before, i think both characters need to develop and grow on their own before I put them together, just like in the show, if Klance turns out to be canon (which I'll be talking about in a second). But now both characters have grown, both have had their ups and downs, and now they're ready to be together, so buckle your seatbelts, Klance is on it's way.

**@MERCY_ISH_ME : do you think Klance will ever be canon, or did season 6 ruin that idea?**

Yes. I think Klance will be canon. Here's why. I saw this on Instagram, get ready for some reading lol:

Here's the link: https://www.instagram.com/p/BkgIbfDHfIc/?utm_source=ig_share_sheet&igshid=1budip3n50o9g

Honestly, I agree with all of this. It makes sense, and it gives me a lot of hope for a Klance endgame. Needless to say, I'm excited for season 7 ( **AUGUST 10th!** ).

 **[DarkGem101](https://www.wattpad.com/user/DarkGem101)**   **: Do you agree or disagree that the Illuminati is just a cover up hiding the bigger picture?**

Uhh okay. So I'm BIG into conspiracy theories, myths, legends, shit like that, and I definitely do think that the government hides shit from us, but I think some theories can be a stretch. For example, lizard people. Wtf. But like,, aliens and shit? Totally possible, I think. Illuminati, though? It's a stretch and I think I'd need a solid argument, so if you've got one, sHARE, I'm interested.

 **[DarkGem101](https://www.wattpad.com/user/DarkGem101)**   **: thoughts on mothman?**

Buzzfeed Unsolved? I'm with Ryan on this one. Mothman could propose and I'd marry him in a heartbeat. Totally real. *mothman noises* (please tell me you guys watch buzzfeed unsolved)

 **[Hales002](https://www.wattpad.com/user/Hales002)**   **: What name do you think they'll give Texas Kogane?**

Texas Kogane. Duh.

 


	24. Blush

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> beach day with the whole crew! and then- FINALLY - some good klance content that will secure this fic's tag in Klance

 

Allura let out a frighteningly loud battle cry as she jumped up and spiked the volleyball towards the sand, only to have Keith dive to the rescue and pop it over to Shiro, who hit the ball back over the net to Lance.

The whole group, including Allura and Hunk, was at the beach as the summer temperature spiked into the 90s. Shiro and Keith faced off against Lance and Allura in beach volleyball while Hunk and the Holt's waded in the cold ocean, pointing out shells and pretty stones. The three mers all wore their cots again, to Lance's disappointment, but it ultimately made everything a lot more fun, considering the fact that Lance could swim freely with legs.

Lance was pretty sure that Shiro had died for a second when he saw Allura in her bikini, very unlike the one-piece she'd donned at the Falls a few weeks back. His face had gone as red as a tomato and he stuttered for a second, which Allura found hilarious.

Pidge and Matt both wore swim tees because Matt burned easily and Pidge wore their binder. But the rest of the boys wore swim trunks, even if Hunk was a little self-conscious. Pidge made Hunk talk about Shay, who Hunk had apparently been talking with a lot, and Shiro and Allura were absolute couple goals, toned as fuck and stunningly gorgeous. Whenever a boy on the beach so much as  _looked_  at Allura, Shiro got overprotective, even when Allura scolded him for scowling so much.

The two were officially dating now, and Keith was really happy for his best friend, getting out of his shell and shit. Lance had been a little more open to Keith lately, saying good morning and accepting the coffee Keith presented to him. Lance had even started smiling at Keith again, the sunshine smile he'd missed so much.

But right now, the two sets were enemies, bumping and spiking the poor volleyball at each other. All four of them were very competitive, and Lance was excited that he got to show off his speed. He'd been correct to assume that he was just as speedy underwater as he was on land, and even Shiro seemed surprised as Lance darted across the sand, saving the ball from hitting the hot ground.

Keith couldn't help but get a little bit distracted when Lance sprang to hit the ball over the net- his chest opened up and his abs tightened, a look of smug victory covering his face every time he got the best of Keith and Shiro.

But the two teams were very well-matched, and the mers caught on quick to the objective. By the time they finished one round (to 25 points) they were all laughing breathlessly, faces red from exertion.

Lance and Allura ducked under the net and high-fived, 'good games' passing between each other. Shiro and Keith had won by six points. Sweat dotted their foreheads, and in seconds, they were all running into the water, Hunk and the Holt's protesting as they scared all the fish away.

Splash fights obviously ensued, and at one point, Shiro suggested a chicken-fight in the waist-deep water. Keith climbed into his shoulders, and Lance got on Hunk's and they clashed together, fingers interlocked as they tried to push each other over.

Lance was competitive, and while Keith had more upper-arm strength than he did, he wasn't going down without a fight. When Keith finally got the best of him, his wet hands slippery, Lance gripped Keith's pale arms and they fell of their friends' shoulders together, tumbling into the water. As Lance attempted to surface, he felt his hand land on something broad and warm, and when he opened his eyes, he was practically laying on top of Keith in the water, palm on Keith's lower stomach- his  _hot abs._

He surfaced laughing, flicking his hair out of his eyes and helping Keith to his feet as well, who was damn near starstruck by Lance's laughter.

...

Lance couldn't surf. As much as Keith tried to teach him, he wasn't very balanced and he ended up falling right away, even just standing on the board on calm water. Keith opted for a boogie board for him instead, and it was still mediocre at best, but he was proud.

The waves were big, and Keith was itching to surf, so after teaching Lance how to boogie board and checking in with the rest of the group who was lounging on the beach, Keith grabbed his board and paddled out to scope some waves. There were a few other surfers there, so Keith took his opportunity when they went back onto the beach to rest.

As soon as he caught a wave, he stood, arms out for balance. Surfing was kind of like an art to Keith. He knew how to make micro adjustments to his stance, his balance, to keep going forward. He knew how to twist over the curve and bank out of the wave, how to get out of 'tombstoning' and how to escape the crash of the wave. When the water was curled around him, and all he could hear is the sound of the ocean, Keith felt more relaxed than ever.

Lance, on the sand, let himself admire Keith's sculpted abs, rolling his eyes. Keith was cool. And sweet, for the coffee thing. And weird. And cute.

...

Keith was ready to give up on this whole Lance thing. It was the night after their beach day, and he was starting to doubt everything. Was Lance ever gonna respond to him in a way that he could take as interest? Would Lance ever want that with Keith?

He lay in his bed in the basement, tossing and turning. The string of fairy-lights around him dimly illuminated his room- the TV and the gaming stuff (for Matt and Pidge and Shiro) and the skateboard on the floor... Keith closed his eyes.

He felt like he'd been asleep for barely a few seconds when he felt something cover his arm, shaking him gently. Keith's eyes flashed open to meet bright, aquamarine ones.

"Swim with me?"

...

The ocean was colder at night, but Lance's hand was warm and comforting around Keith's as he led him down the dunes to the ocean.

Lance had asked Keith to drive the two of them to the beach, saying that he wanted to 'hang out'. Whatever that meant, Keith didn't care. He was just happy to be with Lance. Said boy's hair was messy from sleep, and he was still wearing his pajamas. He hadn't let Keith change out of his either, and neither of them had thought to grab towels on their way out.

"Lance, what are we doing?" Keith asked hesitantly as Lance stopped on the beach, looking out over the ocean. He looked at Keith over his shoulder, eyes glowing in the moonlight.

"We're swimming, I told you," he said, then started taking off his shirt. The tanned skin of his back rippled with muscles as he lifted off his shirt, nodding to Keith to do the same.

"Won't you change, though?" Keith asked, concerned.

Lance just nodded, shucking off his sweatpants, leaving him in briefs. Keith gulped and tried not to stare. Lance was already walking down to the beach anyways.

Keith jogged after him and they stood together at the foot of the surf, preparing themselves for the frigid water. Keith didn't even know what time it was. He felt Lance's hand slip into his own, though, and his heart soared.

"Let's get it fucking over with," he muttered, and Lance laughed breathlessly. On the count of three, they ran into the ocean, clutching each other's hand, yelping at how cold it was.

"Dunk!" Lance shrieked, and Keith obliged, diving under the waves, letting the cold settle under his skin. When he surfaced, the water around him was glowing. Behind him, Lance had transformed and was all lit up, stunningly bright. The mermaid floated on his back, eyes closed, smiling. Keith took his hand again, and stood next to Lance, watching him.

"I want to be with you too," Lance murmured, and his lights glowed brighter.

Keith breathed a sigh of relief. Finally. "Good," his voice came out deep.

Lance opened his eyes and flipped forward, throwing his long arms around Keith's neck and pulling himself closer. Keith was so overwhelmed with how close Lance was, it took him a second to realize they were hugging. Immediately, he hugged back, burying his face in the crook of Lance's neck, which made the mer giggle. Lance's skin was warm and smooth and Keith wanted to stay in his arms forever.

"Does this mean we're dating?" Lance asked quietly, torso flush to Keith's. His tail drifted back in the currents. Keith paused.

"If you want to," he mumbled, blushing. Lance's musical laughter was light in his ear.

"Yeah, I do."

Keith pulled back a few inches, enough to look Lance in the eye. They probably looked so weird, a human and a mermaid hugging in the middle of the night in the ocean. Lance's eyes were bright, and they had stars in them. Keith looked down at Lance's lips, pink and full, then back to his eyes. Lance got the gist, but leaned back, smiling devilishly, and put a finger over Keith's lips.

"Not yet," he whispered. His breath hitched as Keith instead kissed Lance's index finger over his lips, then managed a cool smirk. Lance's cheeks went vermillion, and Keith couldn't help it, he leaned forward and slowly pressed his mouth to Lance's cheek, feeling the heat under his lips.

Lance's hands started shaking, and he closed his eyes. Keith was so close. He wanted him to stay that way maybe forever.

...

Hey guys :)

  
I have a little hint for you about Shiro's endgame in this fic, but first, some more Q&As from watty!

[weird_without_reason](https://www.wattpad.com/user/weird_without_reason)  **: whats your favorite comment you've ever gotten on a story?**

Dndjfjfjfj this is so hard. But I'd have to say, on the epilogue of Beat Drop, there are a few very long comments of appreciation that made me tear up. I love all my readers so much ahhhhh

That's not to say that I don't absolutely adore all the comments on this fic- I do, I just want to see your reactions for the end of the fic :)) it's going to end similarly to Beat Drop, I think, as in an Epilogue to wrap everything up. Im not sure yet.

 

Okay, next question:

[JordyIsHere](https://www.wattpad.com/user/JordyIsHere) : **How did you find and start watching Voltron?**

I actually heard about it from an internet friend (who's now estranged) who really liked it. I watched the first episode and fell in love with the characters... this was back when there was only one season haha. I'm so proud that it's gone so far!! And season seven soon ahhhh (you all know my opinion on klance, so I'm not too worried).

How did you guys hear about Voltron? How'd you start reading SWM?

And now for your surprise, I have a hint for the Shallura/Shatt endgame (if you don't wanna know, skip over the bold)  
  


**The Shiro-ship that turned out to be endgame in Beat Drop will not be the ship that finishes in Swim With Me.**   
  
  


Don't spoil it for anyone :))

 

ilyilyily <33

 


	25. Holding Onto You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Quality klance cuddles and love, and a motorcycle ride through the city

From that night on, Keith and Lance were on good terms again. More than that. Keith walked with Lance to the grocery store, telling him about different human customs and holidays, or just holding his hand as they strolled on the sidewalk. Lance was outraged that he'd been cheated out of Christmas and Halloween, and even his own birthday.

 

"It's not a big deal for us, I guess. It's our Deathday that's the important one." Lance did happen to know when his birthday was (July 28th) and Keith was surprised by how close it was. He promised to celebrate with Lance when the day came (about a week).

 

Keith was suddenly feeling like he didn't have all the time he wanted to spend with Lance. They were a couple, a pair, and Keith wanted to show Lance around, take him to tourist spots, just hang out, but he was aware that summer was running out. He'd have to go back to school soon and what would Lance do then? Stay at home? Sooner or later, Lance would have to go back to his own home- and even then, the village moved every few years.

 

Lance felt like water slipping through Keith's fingers. It was keeping Keith up, and he felt like every moment, he stressed about the time, the date. He never mentioned it aloud, though. He couldn't make himself say it to Lance, because then Lance would see the impossibility of their relationship as well.

 

Keith lay awake downstairs on the basement couch, an empty bag of chips next to him on the floor. The basement was nice and cool and it smelled faintly of laundry detergent. Keith had even put a few posters up to make it more home-like. He was thinking about summer (as always) when he suddenly heard thumping footsteps down the carpeted stairs behind him. It was too dark to see who it was.

 

"Yeah?" Keith called out. It was probably Pidge, searching for something in the supply closet. But Pidge's voice wasn't the one to reply.

 

"Hey, man," Lance said quietly. Keith sat up and squinted at the outline of Lance in the dark room.

 

"What's up?" Keith asked, propped up on his elbows. He could hear the sound of Lance's breathing, louder than usual because of tiredness. Lance's breath got all deep and huffy when he was sleepy, and Keith was just thankful that he didn't snore (Lance had fallen asleep once on Keith's shoulder when they'd watched a movie together).

 

"I can't sleep," Lance admitted, mumbling, "Bad dreams."

 

Keith could hear his heartbeat in his ears as he lifted up the corner of his blankets invitingly, "C'mere." He moved over on the pullout, making space for Lance. "You okay?" he asked as Lance crawled over the flimsy mattress to Keith, laying down on his side, facing away.

 

"Yeah," he sighed, sounding tired. Keith hoped he was telling the truth. He flopped back down onto his back and resumed staring at the ceiling. After a few minutes, just as Keith knew he would, Lance shifted and turned over, situating himself closer to Keith until he'd pressed himself into Keith's side, one arm draped over his stomach. "Thanks," he murmured into Keith's shirt.

 

Nodding, Keith found Lance's face in the dark and cupped his cheeks in his palms, lips grazing Lance's forehead. "I really care about you, Lance," he said boldly, loudly. Lance chuckled, grasping Keith's cotton t-shirt.

 

"No shit," he said in return, "I do too." It was silent then, and even a little bit awkward, but that was to be expected. Keith'd never slept in the same bed as someone else unless they had a pillow barrier and were facing opposite directions. And now here he was, holding a beautiful boy's face in his hands as he drifted into sleep, slowly stretching his legs to reach out to Lance's.

 

Hooked at the knees, Lance's skin warm through his shirt, his breath ghosting over Keith's neck, it felt right. Lance smelled like soap and grass, like sweat and the sea and peaches. Keith would kiss every one of his freckles if he could. The patches on his knees, knuckles, and collarbone. He didn't know that this was possible, to feel so strongly after such a short amount of time. It was confusing and he was terrified he was going to lose the feeling of being totally enamored with everything Lance did.

 

He wanted to cradle Lance in his arms and touch his skin like it was made of easily-bruising flower petals, caress his back with only his fingertips, run the pad of his thumb over Lance's lips like a whisper. And at the same time, he wanted to bite Lance's shoulder and leave a mark, be bold and throw himself into the tumultuous waves of possession. He wanted Lance to look at him with yearning and want, and he wanted to want Lance so badly it hurt.

 

Intrusive thoughts circled Keith's mind as he held Lance to his chest, blood rushing in his ears, heat in his cheeks. Lance was so unique and undeniably indecisive, a constant change of plans and feelings. And yet, Keith would gladly through himself into that riptide of heavy, hard, raw emotions, let his heart be crushed in the coral reef and submit to Lance's bright eyes and thin fingers through his hair.

 

Keith was so sleep-deprived, he didn't even know what he was thinking anymore. He could only hold onto Lance, that one strand of sureness, in the dark basement and hope that he'd finally be able to sleep. Surprisingly, he succeeded.

 

...

 

Lance sat on the motorcycle seat eagerly, holding a bulky, black helmet in his hands. Keith came outside in shorts and a tank top, fussing with his hair as he pushed his sunglasses up the bridge of his nose. "C'mon, Mullet," Lance called, grinning.

 

The previous night, Lance had beaten the household tenants in multiple rounds of card games like BS, Spoons, and Spit (it was sort of unreal and Keith was convinced that Lance was using some sort of mermaidian trickster powers until Shiro owned everyone in Go Fish).

 

His request for a prize for winning was a motorcycle ride with Keith into the city. It wasn't that Keith minded, he definitely didn't, but this was a pretty public display of his... queerness. Kind of like coming out to every tourist and resident they passed, he guessed.

 

But seeing Lance's face all lit up like that... Keith basically felt invincible. He strapped on his own helmet, then helped Lance with his own. "Hold on," he reminded Lance, even though they'd ridden together before. This time was different, though. Lance wasn't stiff as he held onto Keith's torso, and he didn't keep from touching Keith's back like he had before. Now, he openly leaned against Keith, hands clasped around his stomach, sighing happily into his shoulder blade. 

 

Keith's motorcycle was 6 years old and even before that it'd been used, but Keith had kept up with all the mechanics and changes and such, so it still ran near-perfectly. As they worked their way towards Main Street, Keith turned on the radio, pleasantly surprised by the track. He shouted over his shoulder to Lance, "This used to be my favorite song when I was a teenager!" and Lance laughed, lightening to it.

 

 

 

The pair zoomed down the street, legs tucked up as they wove through the streets. Keith lost himself in the feeling of his bike below him, Lance behind him, and the music around him, and he started singing along, " We rattle this town, we rattle this scene..."

 

"Oh, Anna Sun," he whooped, passing shops and weaving through pedestrians easy as pie. His smile was so big, he forgot about the threat of incoming autumn and the stares of curious passersbys. He had Lance with him, he could do anything.


	26. Knots

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance’s birthday!!

Lance wanted his birthday to be lowkey. He didn't want a surprise, a big party, any of that. He wanted Hunk, Allura, and all the tenants of the Holt household, a cake, and a good movie. Some warmth and friendship he could surround himself with.

 

Of course, Keith was happy to oblige and planned almost everything, but there was one aspect of the party that he hadn't figured out yet. Lance's gift. He didn't want to be too forward- they hadn't been dating for that long anyway, but he did want it to be meaningful, something Lance could cherish.

 

The shops of their Californian harbor city were perfect, though, holding treasures that Keith just had to find. First, he thought about getting Lance something like a book, so he could curl up and read and have some quiet time to himself, but then Keith decided that was too solitary (he didn't even know if Lance took reading lessons under the sea- he didn't want to embarrass him if he couldn't read).

 

He thought then of getting him something simple- a few shells, some nail polish, maybe some pearl earrings? Lance would probably like some jewelry, but Keith figured that the earrings might fall out underwater, where the current was strong, and Lance had enough shells and nail polish as it was.

 

As he walked along the pier, strolling casually with his hands in his pockets, Keith looked out to sea. What would happen once Lance left? Would things just go back to normal? What even was normal now? Now that Keith knew that mermaids were real and there was a mermaid war going on and his best friend was dating the leader of a mermaidian village? It was all too much, but it wasn't like he could turn back.

 

And yet, he couldn't help but think about it. Would Lance forget about him, just like that? Keith knew he'd never be able to forget Lance, but was he just another human in the long run? Sure, Lance deserved better, but at the same time, Keith couldn't stand the thought of Lance with someone else, mermaid or not.

 

Keith turned to enter a small shop called "Knick Knots", painted blue. Petite and bright, the little store looked to hold clothing, jewelry, soaps and lotions, totes and bags, and blankets. Soft lo-fi music played through hidden speakers and the sea breeze that floated through the store gave everything an air of soft elegance.

 

Keith meandered through the store thoughtfully, looking over the products. Nothing really caught his eye until he noticed something at the checkout counter. A large jar of braided ropes. Upon closer inspection, Keith recognized it as a jar of bracelets, the white, braided, rope ones. The clerk, a young woman in a yellow sundress who sat on a stool behind the register, noticed Keith's interest.

 

"Ah, sailor's bracelets. Those have an interesting past, boyo." Keith looked up at her, nodding. Her hair was up in a turban, but a few dark curls of hair escaped by her ears. "Sailors used to make them to show their knot-tying skills, show-offs. Thought the ropes gave them good fortune and luck. Then, when they came home, they gave them to their sweethearts so that they'd have something to remember them by when they went back to sea. Pretty sweet, if you ask me," the clerk said, fingers straying to her own bracelet.

 

"Something to remember them by, huh?" Keith murmured, reaching into the jar to pull a pair of bracelets out.

 

...

 

Lance was mesmerized by balloons, as was Allura and Hunk. "But how do they float?" Allura demanded, making Shiro burst out laughing.

 

The spacious kitchen in the beach house was filled with friends and the smell of marbled cake. Hunk had oven mitts on, working with Shiro to make a cake. He'd gotten so excited when Shiro had asked him to help, Lance thought he'd cry from happiness. It was Hunk's dream, after all, to open up a restaurant- whether on land or under the sea, he didn't care.

 

His cheek had a streak of flour on it, and his shirt had splatters of chocolate and vanilla cake batter on it, and Lance couldn't help but smile with him- he looked so happy. Music played on the stereo- mainstream pop and everyone was talking, listening to funny stories and exchanging comments.

 

Lance didn't know if this was how a birthday party normally went, but he loved it nonetheless. He'd been even more surprised when everyone showed up with gifts- he'd had no idea that everyone would actually bring him something. His cheeks hurt from smiling so wide.

 

The cake looked professional by the time that Shiro and Hunk finished, half because Shiro was a perfectionist at heart, half because Hunk was a natural at spreading frosting. As they all sat down at the table, paper plates and party hats scattered everywhere, Keith stood behind Lance and lit the candles on the cake, kissing his cheek after and whispering, "Make a wish and blow them out."

 

Lance pulled Keith's arms around his shoulders, closing his eyes as everyone (save Allura and Hunk, who didn't know the words) sang happy birthday. Make a wish? What was he supposed to wish for when everything was going so well? He was happier than ever, what more could he ask for?

 

I wish to stay happy like this for as long as I can.

 

Lance blew out the candles with a whoosh, and everyone applauded. He felt Keith's lips on the top of his head before he left to get a knife to cut the cake. Lance's heart ached- he didn't know how realistic his wish was.

 

...

 

"Is it weird that I wanted to give you your gift in private?" Keith mused, kneading his fingers into Lance's muscled back.

 

Lance shrugged, "Dunno. Remember, I've never had a birthday before. I wasn't even expecting gifts."

 

And the gifts had been amazing, no surprise there. Allura and Shiro bought Lance a buttload of cosmetics and face masks, lotions and makeup and brushes. Lance's jaw dropped when he saw the giant Sephora bag, and Shiro promised to teach him about all the different uses of the products. Apparently, he'd opened up to Allura about being a beauty guru, and she'd been so accepting that she requested a makeover like Lance's on Shiro's YouTube channel. He'd been ecstatic.

 

Hunk had surprised everyone with a gift from Lance's mother- a giant plate of her famous soft-shell crabs. Lance would've felt homesick had it not been for the positive, family-like vibes his friends gave off. The crabs were delicious. Hunk also made Lance a few homemade coupons with things like "I'll make you a big batch of French fries at any time of the day" and "I'll get seaweed from the village for a face mask for you".

 

Pidge and Matt chipped in with iTunes gift cards and, surprisingly, two aloe plants and a cactus. "They don't need to be watered very often," Matt explained, "And you can take the leaves of the aloe and make face and hair masks with the liquid inside." Lance thought they were even cooler than his angler fish lamp at home.

 

Now, it was late, after the party. After cake and ice cream and presents, everyone had watched a movie together (The Greatest Showman- Lance loved it) and then Shiro had driven Allura and Hunk back to the ocean. The party had been everything Lance had hoped for and more.

 

Keith and Lance were sitting up in the attic on Lance's bed, Keith massaging Lance's back by request. "Only because it's your birthday," he'd mumbled, but he was actually enjoying himself. Lance's back was strong and smooth, and he prided himself in being able to work out the knots in his shoulders.

 

"Okay, okay," Lance said, turning, "Now I'm curious. You know you didn't have to get me anything, right?"

 

"Of course I did," Keith said, pulling away to grab the small gift bag on the floor beside the bed. "I hope you like it," he mumbled as he handed Lance the bag.

 

Lance smiled widely as he reached into the bag and pulled out two rope bracelets, white and braided tightly. Lance ran his fingertips over the braids, then looked up at Keith.

 

"They're sailors bracelets," he explained. Gently, he took one of the bracelets and worked it over his hand and onto his wrist. "Sailors used to give them to their wives and girlfriends and stuff so they'd have something to remember them by when they left to go out on the sea again." He paused.

 

"Whenever you leave, I want you to have this so that you can think of me. And I'll think of you too." His face was red. Lance's face broke out in the sweetest sunshine smile Keith'd ever seen. He fit his hand through the rope and admired the simplicity of the gesture. It was beyond meaningful.

 

"I promise I'll think of you," Lance whispered, twisting the bracelet around his wrist. "And I have a gift for you too," he said shyly. He looked at Keith dead in the eye, all fierce and beautiful. His brown hair fell messily over his face as he raised up a hand to Keith's cheek. Every move he made was slow and calculated, which was unusual.

 

Keith realized what was happening and he shifted closer, closer still, pressing his forehead to Lance's, then the tips of their noses. He swore that this close, he could count every freckle on Lance's cheeks, every eyelash. Lance was looking down, and his mouth hung slightly ajar. Keith heard his breathing.

 

Raising up his hand, Keith placed his palm over Lance's collarbone, pressing his thumb right to that soft divot in the middle, just enough that he could feel Lance's heartbeat. It was hammering against the pad of his thumb, and Lance's breath came just a bit faster, a sharp inhale at Keith's touch.

 

He rubbed his nose against Keith's, tilting his head to the side just a fraction of an inch. Keith's other hand came up to the back of Lance's neck and he exhaled over Lance's lips. Keith rubbed his fingers through the short hair at the nape of Lance's neck. The tension was so thick, he felt he might collapse. Instead, he stilled himself, waiting for Lance.

 

Lance's lids fluttered shut, and he tilted his head just enough to brush his lips against Keith's slight and soft. He pulled back quickly, surprised by himself. Keith regarded Lance patiently, waiting. His lips tingled. The skin under Lance's freckles was pink. He leaned forward again, barely.

 

And Lance's eyes were so blue Keith thought me might drown in them. Instead he pulled Lance closer, closer than he should, and invited Lance to close the distance between them. This time, Lance was bolder, pressing his mouth over Keith's with need while his mind exploded in fireworks.

 

Lance's hands were shaking as they moved to hold Keith's cheeks, so Keith grabbed them mid-kiss and interlocked their fingers, gravity dropping him over Lance's chest as they leaned back on the bed. Lance tasted like chapstick and chocolate covered strawberries (compliments to Edible Arrangements).

 

Lance pulled back, flirting, making Keith reach for his lips, teasing. A low growl, or something like that, escaped from Keith's throat and he pressed his mouth to Lance's neck instead, satisfaction lighting up in his head when he heard Lance sigh breathily.

 

Lance reached under Keith's shirt and ghosted his fingertips over his stomach, the froze, yanking his hand back. Keith pulled back, confused. "Sorry," Lance laughed nervously, "I want... to go slower. Slowly. Not yet." His words came out rushed, but Keith understood.

 

"I know," he said, settling beside Lance instead. Lance was smiling, cheeks still pink, and he ran his index finger over Keith's Cupid's bow.

 

"Thank you for such a good birthday."


	27. Something’s Wrong

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance comes down with a scary sickness that threatens his life on land

Lance's nightmares weren't getting better. He never told Keith the details- instead, he kept them inside his head, replaying them over and over. It was nearly impossible for a mermaid to drown. But in his nightmares, Lance was being pulled down underwater, but he wasn't able to change, only struggle with his legs and without his gills. He always woke up right when he was on the brink of losing consciousness.

 

Lance contemplated asking Allura if she knew what it meant, but he knew she'd just get worried about him and make him go back to the sea. Allura was already busy, stressed, taught like a rubber band being stretched further and further.

 

She brought Lance news of the war, which was now full-force, evenly-matched, "Zarkon is yet to show his ugly face." It scared Lance. He'd forgiven his father- life was too short to hold a grudge against your family, but now Carlos was on the war front, and Lance didn't know what he'd do if something happened to his father. What would happen to his mother, his family? Frederico would be notified, and Lance could only imagine how much that would hurt.

 

Shaking his head violently, Lance pushed those thoughts away. He was determined to finish his own mission, then he could worry about the war. He needed to have faith in his people. They were resilient, strong, and were being led by the combined force of the genius strategist Alfor and the entire Blade of Marmora fleet. That, of course, only made him worry for Ulaz and Thace... Grinding his teeth, Lance rubbed his bracelet, wishing Keith was there to console him.

 

Over the weeks, Lance had learned what a good listener Keith was. He'd sit with Lance and let him vent, never getting bored. He'd massage Lance's palms and keep strong eye contact, his dark eyes sometimes making Lance lose his train of thought.

 

Once, Lance was talking about a particularly difficult day at work, and Keith was staring at him, interested, silent. Lance trailed off, mesmerized, and he couldn't help it, he just fell forward into Keith's arms and pressed his lips to his, running his hands through that stupid mullet that he loved so much.

 

That was another thing, though. After that first kiss, Keith surprised Lance with little signs of affection that made Lance's heart speed up and cheeks go pink. Every morning (since they'd taken to sleeping together, either in the basement or the attic) Keith would wake Lance up with kisses to his face and a mug of coffee.

 

It almost made Lance feel bad- he felt like he didn't do enough for Keith, but when he brought it up, Keith disagreed and told Lance that Lance had already done so much for him, he was trying his best to make up for it. Although confused, Lance let it go and enjoyed the coffee and kisses.

 

Whenever they were both off work, they'd go out to eat, see a movie, or walk around town. Keith wanted to be closer, even closer than he was already, closer than he should've been, all because of the overarching threat of the end of summer. He took Lance to a pizza shop and they discovered that Lance's favorite food was not, in fact, heaven sticks/french fries, but garlic knots. Lance insisted on getting three more orders to take home with them.

 

They ate ice cream and went on walks on the beach and when they weren't chatting casually, they were just enjoying each other's company. Something about their relationship felt different. Keith couldn't place it, but it was something about Lance... Like the cliche that they'd met in a previous life or something.

 

He wanted it to last for as long as possible.

 

...

 

Something wasn't right. Lance woke up shaking and burning hot, feeling like absolute hell. He elbowed Keith harder than he should've and Keith woke up with an agitated, "Ow!"

 

But then he turned on the bedside light and saw Lance's face- saw how his nose and cheeks were turning the color of a bruise. Saw how his hands were red and splotchy as were the patches of freckles on Lance's collarbone, knees, shoulders.

 

"The tub," Lance groaned, wheezing. Keith raced upstairs, tripping over his own feet as he sprinted to the bathroom. Filling the tub, he didn't care that it was freezing cold- Lance needed it for whatever was going on. Keith thundered down the stairs, trying to catch his breath, and gathered Lance up into his arms, straining at the weight as he tried his best to hurry back upstairs. Shiro had woken up by the noise and was standing by the bathroom, looking drowsy and concerned.

 

Keith practically shoved past him with Lance in his arms, and gracelessly placed Lance into the tub, sending water splashing over the both of them. Lance hissed at the freezing water, which was only a few inches deep, but stayed still, watching the faucet anxiously. His hands were shaking.

 

"What the hell is going on?" Shiro asked, suddenly alert. Keith shook his head, giving Shiro a clueless expression. A few minutes later, the Holts were in the bathroom too, peeking through the doorway at Lance.

 

As soon as the water was deep enough to dunk, Lance thrust his head underwater, surfacing only to cry out in pain. Changing never hurt like this normally. Keith was by his side, and Lance gripped his hand tightly as scales sealed his legs together, decimating his graceful feet into a flattened tail. Once the process was over, Keith was still staring.

 

Lance looked terrifying. His gills leaked blue blood, and his scales were falling out, floating on top of the water like grotesque rose petals. Lance leaned back against the sill of the tub and closed his eyes. Tears were streaming down his face, and his bottom lip quivered.

 

"Lance, what's going on?" Keith asked, paranoid, terrified, pushing Lance's hair back from where it was plastered with sweat to his forehead.

 

"I don't know, I don't know," Lance heaved, "Just stay."

 

Keith vowed to. He fell asleep against the tub, holding Lance's hand even still.

 

...

 

"He sounds like he's been smoking a pack a day since he was two." These were the first words that Shiro told Keith the next morning. Lance was still asleep in the tub. He'd stopped bleeding and scales stopped falling out, but Keith wasn't letting him leave that tub until he was certain that Lance would be okay as a human.

 

What Shiro had said was true: Lance's voice sounded like fish hooks had been dragged through his poor lungs. It made Keith's heart break for his boyfriend. He'd already called both of their works and explained that Lance was extremely sick and he needed to stay home to take care of him. It was reasonable enough, truthful, even.

 

Matt had been searching around dark corners of the internet for any mermaidian sicknesses, but of course, all he'd found was bullshit and a few blogs from 7-year-olds about how their toy mermaids were feeling under the weather after their tea parties. Out of luck, and probably against his better judgment, Shiro called Allura.

 

When worried, concerned, upset, Allura was a force to be reckoned with. Lance had woken up in the tub- it was later in the afternoon, and had been damn near terrified at the news of Allura's beckoning. Keith had made him soup, even offered to go and get fries, but Lance could barely even drink water. He said that he'd throw up if he ate, he knew it, and he didn't want to waste food.

 

Keith didn't care if he wasted food- that didn't matter right now, what mattered was that he kept Lance as healthy as possible. And so far, he was failing. His own incompetency angered him, and sometimes he had to close his eyes, take deep breaths to keep from punching the wall. He wanted to help, but Lance was a completely different species. He didn't want to make him worse than he already was.

 

And it was bad, Lance was. He talked like it was fine, like he wasn't in pain, but Keith could tell. He saw it in Lance's eyes, the way he winced, the way he bit his lips. It made Keith want to scream- he wanted to take all the pain away. He could bare it. Just stop hurting Lance.

 

When Shiro told Lance about Allura, Lance's tail jerked involuntarily, sending water over the sides of the tub. His tail was longer than the length of the tub, so 3/4ths of his entire tail hung out over the end of it. "Shiro, you don't know Allura if you haven't seen her angry," Lance joked weakly, making Shiro's face go ashen. "Mermaids like Allura have an aura when they're pissed, so you can expect to see that when she comes over."

 

He was right. As soon as Allura came inside, hair messy and natural (she'd come straight from the sea- Shiro had called her emergency water-proof pager thing), she pretty much sucked all the attention to herself. Her eyes, darker, only softened for Shiro, briefly, as she kissed him. Her optics then caught on Keith, and he felt the air go dead. Her voice from the other side of the room sounded like it had been amplified through high-tech speakers- every syllable enunciated and separate.

 

"Where is my best friend?" she said, voice low. Everyone in the room suddenly understood her lineage, how she was raised to be a leader- practically a queen. She certainly had the aura of one. Held herself high, chin up, shoulders back, hands on her hips.

 

As Keith looked at her, everything, everyone else in the room blurred out while her figure stayed sharp, maybe even sharpened. And there it was again- the same thing he'd glimpsed in Lance. Gills- pushing against the skin of her throat, streaks of bright markings showing through her dark skin. When he managed to blink, they were gone.

 

"Bathroom," he said shortly, then turned, heading into the room himself.

 

Lance was sitting up in the bath, placing scale tape over his wounds. The adhesive would protect the sensitive spots until new scales could develop. It was really a genetic thing if you could regenerate scales, some mers couldn't, and sometimes if a wound was too severe, scales wouldn't regenerate even if you did have the gene, scar tissue would just form. Lance had the regenerative gene, though, so he hoped they'd grow back quickly.

 

He looked up when Keith came in, then startled a bit when Allura entered after him. "Ally..." he started slowly, holding his hands up as if in surrender. She swept forward and wrapped her arms around Lance's wet shoulders, and if he hadn't known better, he would've said she was shaking. The markings on his cheeks and collarbones pulsed slowly- happiness and pain. Lance made eye contact with Keith over Allura's shoulder, steady and calm. Keith nodded and walked out of the bathroom, shutting the door behind him.

 

"What happened?" Allura demanded fearfully, looking over Lance's tail, examining the patches where scales had fallen out. She wouldn't tell him, but Lance looked paler, sickly. She didn't think he'd want to hear it yet.

 

"I was fine yesterday, but I woke up sometime in the night and it felt like... it felt like I was burning from the inside out. Keith told me that my patches," he pressed his fingers to the freckles on his cheeks, "were blue. Not my blue," referring to the color of his luminescence, "Bruise blue, bad blue. Keith brought me in here and I changed, but it hurt, more than usual."

 

Normally, the transformation that hurt more was changing into a human as a) the tail split in half and b) lungs had to start working, and changing back into a mer was easier because you just had to seal your legs and go back to gills, not to mention a mer's original form was much easier to return to, but this time the transformation to his normal self had hurt Lance more, and that was concerning, of course.

 

Allura bit the inside of her cheek, nervous (more than that, even). "Lance, maybe we need to rethink this. I knew that sending you up here was never a good idea, but now I'm starting to think it's a bad idea. You've been up here long enough. My father didn't think about the consequences, and I'm sure that whatever information you've gathered up here is worthy of the experiment. Father will have enough data to complete his study."

 

Lance sensed what Allura was going to say and started shaking his head, "Ally, please don't do this." Allura cupped Lance's cheeks, staring hard into his blue eyes,

 

"You have to come home." Lance weakly pushed her hands away, tears pooling up in his eyes.

 

"No, no, no," he protested, "Keith's here, I have to be with him."

 

 

"We learned about this, Lance, in school. You heard about mers who try to stay up here for too long. We were always told it took years, that they could survive for many months, but maybe that's wrong. Maybe it's because you have more luminescence than anyone in this century, Lance, maybe it's because you're so young.

 

"But I know that bad things will happen to you if you stay up here much longer." Allura gulped, "You will die, Lance, if you stay here. I love Shiro, but I know that mers can't stay on land, you're a living example of that. It's not right. It's not how we were made. Sooner or later, you have to realize that, and I'd prefer it to be while you're alive."

 

Allura was terrified now. She'd worked herself up. So much stress was on her shoulders from the war, and now this. Everything would be easier if Lance could come home. She could focus on the war, put her whole heart into the effort, and Lance could help her. He'd always been a strategist, however much he denied it. Passionate and strong, she'd always known his potential. Alfor had too.

 

She knew he'd make a great soldier, a junior general, even. She needed him to be down in the sea with her, with his family, with the village, where he belonged. She'd make him her private bodyguard, and he could live out that dream of being something equal to Ulaz and Thace, a fighter. There was so much waiting for him down there.

 

All that was waiting for him up here was a slow and painful death.

 

 

 

 

 

Allura knew it, Coran had told her about a distant relative of his that stayed out of water for too long. She knew from him how much a mer could suffer. She would never, ever want that for Lance.

 

"Are you saying I have to leave Keith?" Lance's voice was small, and he unconsciously lit up the luminescent stripes on his collarbone.

 

Of course, that was the other thing waiting up here. How could Allura disregard that? She knew that she'd give so much, too much, to be with Shiro, happily on land, but that was impossible. And it was impossible to turn a human into a mer, things just didn't work like that.

 

Allura had exchanged private letters with Lotor (for business only)- she knew the secret to the process of the change. He, of course, was the sea witch who changed mers, and he'd reluctantly told Allura the process (only because she was curious). Basically, he extracted all of the mer's luminescence, which was the main reason why they were a mer, and used it to suspend them in their human form indefinitely.

 

After he'd extracted that magic, that pure essence, there was no turning back. A mer could have as much luminescence as Lance and still not be able to turn back into a mer if they wanted to after the process. After learning that, Allura was repulsed from the idea.

 

She couldn't do it anyways, she was the heir, destined to be the next leader of the village, born to be her father's successor. At least now, she didn't second guess her future.

 

"I'm saying that we don't belong up here. That we have to go home, where we belong." Allura frowned, trying to steel herself even her next words dug at her heart, "Don't make me order you." It was a serious phrase. If Lance refused, he'd have no choice but to be banished.

 

Lance's face crumpled like balled up paper. His shoulders glowed, the same signal his father his presented when Lance had come home so long ago, after their fight. That sadness of nearly losing someone you love. Except for this time, Lance really was losing that person. He was losing Keith. He didn't know if he loved him, he didn't know what that felt like, but he knew he'd do anything to stay for as long as he could.

 

Up here, with Shiro who was like an older brother, Pidge, who was sassy and determined and had so much independence, it scared Lance, and Matt, who was funny and loyal and who Lance could see as becoming his best friend. Up here where Lance could wear makeup and smell food that didn't come from under the sea, where he could bury his toes in hot sand and run across the pavement, where he could drive a car and celebrate his birthday.

 

Where he could kiss Keith and love someone who didn't have a tail. Where he could forget about the war and how he'd be moving to a different part of the world and just have a normal human boyfriend. Where he could smell Keith's shirts and run his hands through his long hair and drink coffee with him in the morning. Where they could walk to the grocery store together and he could hold onto Keith's hips as they raced downtown in his motorcycle.

 

But Allura was telling the truth? Was he really dying? He didn't know. Would he ever be able to be with Keith again if he left with Allura? He didn't know that either.

 

Lance hesitated, then, "Let me stay the night," he pleaded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello wonderful readers! a few things (if you hate a/ns you can skip haha)
> 
> 1) I'm going to WattCon! Are any of guys going too? If so, we should totally say hi! I really hope to be able to meet some of you guys- I'll just be roaming around looking at panels and stuff hehe <3
> 
> 2) Yes, in the last chapter, I confirmed my next klance fic lolol I'll announce the basic plot at the end of this fic :) do you think you'll be interested?
> 
> 3) I was asked about the luminescence and the meaning of different patterns. I remember mentioning this a little bit in one of the early chapters, maybe Blue Eyes, but I'll give you guys the "guide" that I've made. This is referring to the markings that the mers have that light up and what the different stripes and stuff mean.
> 
> Cheeks (the markings are identical to the markings that Alteans have in the show)- happiness, friendliness
> 
> Ribs- warning, anger, danger
> 
> Shoulders- sadness, surrender (in battle)
> 
> Collarbone- distress, panic, pain
> 
> Sail (in the translucent skin between the spines)- thinking, concentration


	28. Love.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith and Lance have one last night together,,, Allura and Matt have a talk

Matt watched Allura walk out of the bathroom, closing the door gently behind her. Keith was standing next to the doorway, arms crossed. It was obvious that he'd been eavesdropping, he made no move to hide it and considering his expression, what Allura had said wasn't what he had wanted to hear.

 

Allura put a hand on his shoulder briefly, sighing, then moved to go to the living room where Shiro was. Instead, Matt poked his head out of the tech room where he'd been working and gestured for Allura to come inside. She looked confused but stepped in the room with Matt.

 

The tech room had a lot of complicated-looking machinery, mostly from Sam and Colleen Holt's jobs at NASA, but there were a bunch of computer monitors too, and even some video game consoles. Two laptops were on, connected to bunches and bunches of wires, and it was assumable that they were Pidge and Matt's.

 

"Hello, Matt, what is it?" Allura asked, folding her arms over her chest naturally. Her face was strained, and even though Matt hadn't heard her and Lance's conversation, he could tell that it had taken a toll on her as well.

 

Her eyes were wandering frantically over the room, obviously overwhelmed. Determined, Matt moved to block her vision, brow set. "Look, Allura," he started. He was at least an inch shorter than she was. "I don't know you that well. I don't even know if we're friends, probably just acquaintances. But you're dating Shiro, and Shiro's my best friend."

 

Matt paused, choosing his next words carefully, "I care a lot about Shiro and I don't want to see him get hurt. So if what you just said to Lance concerning his and Keith's relationship also applies to you and Shiro's, I just think that you should break it to him now instead of later."

 

Allura frowned, "That's-"

 

Matt held his hands up, shaking his head, "I know it's none of my business, I get it. I just... thought I should let you know. Shiro's..." he looked straight into Allura's eyes, chin out, doing his best to get his point across, "sensitive."

 

Something shifted in Allura's face as she looked at Matt, and he didn't know whether it was a good or bad thing. "I'll keep what you've said in mind. Now, if you'd excuse me," she concluded.

 

Matt leaned against the wall, biting his lip. He wondered if he should've just stayed quiet.

 

...

 

"Soup's good," Lance said that night, quietly in the tub. Keith finally got him to eat something, which was an accomplishment. Allura had left a few hours ago with Shiro, talking to him in a soft voice. They hadn't come back yet.

 

Keith nodded, sitting on a stool beside the tub. The same stool from his art studio. He hadn't been sketching much recently and he wondered if that was why he was so damn stressed. No, that was probably due to Lance. Maybe it was a good kind of stress. Was that a thing?

 

Lance slurped his soup noisily, gills pulsing with his breath. Keith admired him, even with all that weird tape on his tail. He hadn't meant to eavesdrop, it just sort of happened. And now he knew that he only had one more night with Lance. If only he could spend it outside a bathtub.

 

Keith tried not to think about dirty things, but it was inevitable. God, he was such a perv. Lance looked up at him, a bit of soup dripping down his chin. Keith couldn't help but smile.

 

"Lance, I have to tell you something."

 

"Oh no," Lance snorted, bringing the soup back up to his mouth. He didn't like spoons. Keith clasped his hand over his knees, then just decided to word vomit the whole thing out. He supposed the reaction would be just the same.

 

"I heard everything," he said quickly.

 

Lance shrugged, "Figures. You've been acting all weird. Sentimental." Keith was confused, if Lance knew, why wasn't he more... emotional? Keith himself wasn't a very open person when it came to feelings, but he knew that Lance was, at least with Keith.

 

"Y'know, I always thought that I wasn't good enough for you," Lance laughed dryly, "I guess this is proof." He was crying now. Keith felt relieved for a split second, it would kind of freak him out if Lance was honestly that emotionless about their relationship.

 

"Oh, love," Keith soothed, reaching forward for Lance. The soup bowl clattered to the tile floor. Lance was crying into his palms, and the surge of incompetency hit Keith so hard he stood, knocking the stool over with the force. Keith whipped his shirt off, then his socks, his jeans.

 

Pushing Lance forward a little bit, Keith climbed into the tub behind him, wincing at the cold water. Lance liked it that way. They'd even poured some salt in the bath to imitate the ocean. Lance leaned back onto Keith's chest, openly sobbing. Keith wrapped his arms around him from behind, trying to console him with soft, "It's okay"'s and "It's gonna be alright, Lance"'s.

 

Lance's skin was surprisingly warm, considering the cold water he was soaking in, almost like a blanket over Keith's torso. "C'mon, Lance, you're gonna make me cry too." He already was.

 

"I don't wanna leave you!" Lance sobbed, flipping over with some trouble so that he lay on his stomach over Keith's chest. Throwing his arms around Keith's neck, water splashed over the sides of the tub. Keith didn't care. He didn't care about anything but Lance at the moment.

 

"I know, I know," Keith stuttered, holding Lance to his chest. If he could keep him here, he would, hands down. But of course, he couldn't say that. Because, if what Allura had said was right, then that would mean Lance's death. And how could he ever, ever want that?

 

Keith had come to the conclusion that he could stand losing Lance to the ocean but he couldn't stand losing Lance to life. As long as he knew that Lance was alive, living, bright-eyed and beautiful as he always was, Keith could stand it.

 

"Lance?" Keith said after a few minutes, letting Lance calm down.

 

Lance looked up at Keith's chin, sniffling, "What?"

 

"I don't know what love is." That sounded stupid. "Well, I mean, I know what love is, but I don't know what it is. You know? But if love is this, this right here, if love is you, Lance, then I love you." He couldn't believe he'd said it.

 

Lance was quiet for so long that Keith thought that maybe he'd fallen asleep. But then Lance spoke up. "I'm in love with the sound of your heart. And your coffee. And your kisses. And everything about you but your mullet," he joked, "And I know it's too soon. We've only known each other for what? A few months at the most? So I don't know if love grows that quickly, but I think it might because I love you too."

 

Keith's heart raised up a little. He could live with that. He could live with the thought of Lance in the ocean, loving him.

 

Lance put his palms on Keith's pecs and raised himself so he could look him in the eyes. The streaks on his cheeks were illuminated. He was happy here. It wasn't morning yet, he didn't have to leave yet, so why should he be sad now?

 

He didn't have to think about leaning down to kiss Keith- it was an impulse by now. This one was different. Slow, deep, meaningful. Full. Full of love.

 

Keith kissed Lance softly and had to remind himself not to cup Lance's neck like he usually did because Lance had gills now. Gills. Good god, how did he fall for such a gorgeous, annoying, beautiful merman? Maybe he'd never know the answer to that. He was okay with that, too.

 

 

...

 

[slight smut will be in italics]

 

It was dark, and neither of them were sleeping. Neither of them wanted to. They lay in the attic with the window open and their fingers intertwined. "I'll take you to the beach tomorrow," Keith whispered, resigned. He turned onto his side, burying his nose in Lance's neck and breathing in the seafoam-and-peach scent of his dark skin.

 

Willing himself not to cry again, he pulled Lance closer to him. He always wanted to be closer to Lance. Maybe Allura's aura was power but Lance's was magnetism. Maybe that explained everything. Neither of them were talking about what was going to happen. They hadn't broken up, the hadn't said goodbye. The thought was terrifying.

 

Lance kissed Keith's neck like a whisper, then moved up his jaw. He'd never done this. He didn't know if he was doing it right, but it was late and they were laying next to each other and the sea breeze that floated in from the open window was soft and smelled like melancholy smiles that were inevitable for tomorrow.

 

Why couldn't tonight just be tonight and not the predecessor of tomorrow?

 

Lance was at Keith's lips now, and something about his kiss was desperate. It hit Keith like a train- what Lance was getting at, that was. He blushed deep and dark, but Lance didn't see it, obviously. He was too busy with his hands all up in Keith's hair and his hip bones on Keith's as he held himself over him.

 

"Are you sure?" Keith held Lance's face back, just a few millimeters. Their lips were still brushing together. He could just make out Lance's eyes in the darkness. They seemed to be glowing. Maybe they were.

 

"Yeah," Lance breathed. Keith's stomach did a somersault.

 

_They fell against each other, skin magnetic. Keith's kisses were rushed as he pulled Lance closer and closer. This was finally how close he wanted to be. Shirts were pulled off. Then pants. Lance used his toes to push off his socks, pressing his knees into the mattress as he kissed Keith in the total darkness. Their hands in each other's hair, lips crashing like waves on the sand, their breathing fast and hurried and in sync._

_What happened next was warm and clumsy and awkward at points but it was perfect. They fell asleep tangled together like the knots in fishnets that lay on the bottom of the ocean floor._


	29. Not Goodbye

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith and Lance have to leave the Holt Household. Matt and Shiro have a moment

_Matt_

 

I had wondered what'd taken them so long. He said that he was just going to take her to the beach to drop her off and then come back, but they were gone for three hours. Of course, at the time, I didn't want to think about any of the events that happened in those three hours, but now I understand how mistaken I was.

 

How they weren't doing any of those things. How the only romantic thing that happened in those three hours was the _end_ of a romance. I think Shiro had seen it coming, but now it had come and he was a mess. I don't think I've seen him cry this hard in a while. It's a little awkward, sitting next to each other on the carpeted floor of his room, leaning against his bed.

 

My arm is starting to fall asleep- it's bent at a weird angle so I can keep it around Shiro's shoulder, but I don't want to move it. Shiro doesn't like to admit it when he cries, so he's trying to talk through it like it's no big deal. He's sniffling like crazy and I reach next to me for the box of tissues I've been going for every few minutes. There's a dozen of them already balled up on the floor beside him.

 

"Shiro, it's okay. Y'know, this is good. You have experience now, you know how to have a relationship."

 

"But..." he starts gruffly, then breaks down again and wipes his nose on his sleeve.

 

He's looking at me like he's heart-broken. I have a problem with that. I guess it would be different if they'd been dating for a few years, but we're talking months, weeks here. I don't understand why he's so torn up, but maybe that's because I've never actually been in an invested relationship before. Or maybe Allura used some sort of mermaid love potion.

 

Maybe that makes me the naive one here, but I know a love that he didn't understand with Allura. I know a love that's lasted years and never faulted once (except that one time I thought I might actually hate him when he broke my upgraded Roomba by stepping on it by accident) (It played music and had a laser pointer!). I know love so deep I sometimes wonder if I'm out of control.

 

And as much as I want to be angry at him for letting this happen to himself, I can't bring myself to be mad. Because he's Shiro. And it's virtually impossible to be mad at Shiro. He gets all sensitive and apologetic and sweet- it's almost like you're angry at yourself when you get mad at Shiro.

 

His dark eyes are pools of bittersweet beauty and we're so close that I can make out the pale scar across his nose, right across the bridge, a result of falling out of a tree when he was a teenager. I've always wanted to touch it. I discreetly sit on my free hand so I'm not tempted.

 

I'm allowing myself to bring forth feelings that I've held back for so long and it's almost too much. Shiro is too much. Too much wisdom, quiet elegance, compassion for one soul. And I'm a scientist, I don't believe in things like destiny and fate and souls, except for Shiro. It's almost inhuman how insightful he is.

 

It breaks my own heart that he's so upset right now. "I thought she was The One." Shiro's voice trembles and I try to be sympathetic, I really do. But it's hard to comfort someone platonically when you're in love with them.

 

I lift my arm from his shoulders gently and pat his knee, grimacing as all the blood rushes back into it. Ow. Shiro's so close that I can feel his body heat on my own skin through his shirt. I wonder absentmindedly if I'll ever be able to tell him I love him.

 

He's frustrated now, blaming himself. I tell him it's not his fault and pat his knee again. He's wearing a tight, black, long-sleeve shirt that smells like his cologne. It's really not his fault, that much I believe. I shouldn't blame him for the whole thing- who _wouldn't_ fall for Allura, even if she wasn't a mermaid. Maybe that was an appeal too.

 

Shiro keeps talking and I listen as best I can. He's going off on how he doesn't think that he's even a good boyfriend, and that's why Allura probably broke up with him, but I know that's bullshit.

 

"Matt, maybe I'm just not a good person."

 

"Shiro, that's bullshit. You're beyond amazing, so just stop it. I don't know why the fuck Allura broke up with you, you're the sweetest, kindest, most compassionate man I've ever met. You're strong and smart and you can always make me feel better. You're my role model and honestly, I don't know where I'd be without you. So stop looking down on yourself because you've always been there for me and I trust you implicitly and I love you."

 

See, I had meant to say that in my head.

 

Shiro's looking at me, shocked. I can't really look away until I remember my hand is still on his knee, so I look at that instead. I hear him inhale like he's about to say something, but I don't let him.

 

Instead, I turn my shoulders and press my lips to his slightly open mouth. It's only for a second. His lips are tacky from chapstick and I feel it on my lips as soon as I pull back. I don't quite register what I've done for a few seconds.

 

Shiro's mouth is hanging open, wider than before, and I almost want to tell him to close it. I can't name every emotion that passes through his eyes as he looks at me, but I recognize confusion and it makes me want to get up and run.

 

At the same time, I want to stay here. Next to him. That side of me wins- I make no move to get up. My hand slides off his knee like dead weight.

 

Panic sets in as I realize what I've done and regret is in my voice as I start, "Shiro..."

 

He brings a palm up to my lips quickly, covering my mouth, looking away. His breath gets quick for some reason and I can basically see the cogs moving in his brain. Thinking, thinking. I want to kiss his palm.

 

After a few moments, he looks at me again, eyes fierce, and in one quick moment, he moves his hand from my mouth to the back of my neck and pulls me forward. I don't really understand that we're kissing until he makes this soft noise, a hum.

 

At this point, I don't even care that I'm a rebound. I've wanted this for years. I've imagined this moment 50 different ways, but this is the 51st that I've never thought of. Shiro pushes me down to the floor and I can taste the artificial strawberry chapstick on his lips.

 

He catches the tip of my tongue between his teeth and I love it. When the hell did he get so good at this? I decide I don't care. The fact is, Takashi Shirogane is kissing me and I've been waiting for too long.

 

...

 

"Keith... Keith, wake up." Keith groaned quietly, turning over. He felt Lance's hand on his shoulder, nudging him gently. For a few, blissful seconds, he didn't remember what had to happen this morning. And then it all came crashing back.

 

Startled, Keith sat up quickly, making Lance lean back at the sudden movement. He looked over at his boyfriend, pausing as he looked over his bare chest. Keith noticed the dark bruises of hickies on Lance's neck and felt bad about them for a split second. Then he felt the sting of scratches on his back and decided that the both of them were even.

 

It was barely light out, just enough for Keith to make out Lance's features. He wanted to kiss him at that moment, but the expression on Lance's face was too serious. "We should go," he said quietly, stretching his arms above his head, "Before the beach fills up."

 

Logically, this made sense. Not surprisingly, Keith felt every atom of his being wanting to resist. Slipping out of the bed, they dressed in silence. Lance had only put on boxers before padding over to Keith, wrapping his arms loosely around Keith's stomach, resting his chin on Keith's shoulder.

 

"Can I have one of your shirts, please?" he murmured, swallowing hard. Keith nodded. After dressing, Keith and a shirtless Lance walked downstairs as quietly as possible. They stopped at the basement door and Keith hurried down, then returned a minute later with a long-sleeved grey shirt, soft and stretchy. Lance pulled it over his head and smiled sadly.

 

Upon entering the kitchen on their way out, Keith nearly had a heart attack. Shiro was leaning up against the counter, sipping a mug of coffee. His expression was neutral, but as soon as he saw Lance, he put down his mug and held open his arms. Lance basically ran into them, too close to crying.

 

Shiro's hug was big and warm and muscley, and Lance had a sudden flashback of that time in the tub when Shiro held him up so he could expand his sail. That was when everyone had accepted him into the house, when he'd thought of Keith as a distant weirdo. Lance smiled tearily into Shiro's shoulder.

 

Holding Lance out at arm's length by his shoulders, Shiro grinned, "Be good, kid," he muttered.

 

Lance nodded, wiping his eyes. He wanted to say something like 'I'll see you again', but he didn't want to make promises he wasn't sure if he could keep. Instead, he gave Shiro one last lingering glance, asked him to say goodbye to the Holt's for him, and headed with Keith outside.

 

The pink hue of the sun against the blue sky was just barely visible, but the sun hadn't peaked yet. Keith and Lance climbed onto the motorcycle in silence, just trying to spend as much time together as possible. Lance's hands around Keith's torso, his head against his back, watching the roads streak past as they rode...

 

They arrived at the beach too quickly. Of course, there were a few people here and there, some running, walking dogs, just watching the sunrise. Keith and Lance kicked off their shoes at the pier, then held hands as they walked down to the beach together. Lance led Keith over to a more secluded section of the beach, where the rocks obscured tourist's visions. It was kind of like a cave, to be honest.

 

Lance gripped Keith's hand tightly as they waded into the surf together, fully clothed. Lance was already crying silently. Keith was soon to. The water was ironically calm, lapping against their waists as the pair waded deeper. It was cold to Keith, regular to Lance. For both of them, it felt like sadness.

 

As salt water began falling down Keith's cheeks to the sea, there was a flicker of movement in the water ahead of them, and suddenly, Allura emerged from the water.

 

She was taller than she should've been, bigger, but maybe that was just Keith's eyes playing tricks on him. Rising through the waves, all of her luminescence was lit, but Keith noticed that she doesn't have half as many markings as Lance, and hers were a pearly pink instead of the pale aquamarine blue.

 

Lance turned to Keith, blue eyes wide and too sad for Keith to bear. Throwing himself into Keith's arms, he nearly knocked him off-balance, but not quite. Keith inhaled deeply, smelling Lance's skin and shampoo. His whole frame shook, wracked with sobs.

 

Keith pulled back enough to see Lance's face. "This is _not_ goodbye, you hear me, Lance?" he asked fiercely. Lance nodded, crying harder. Their lips crashed like waves on rocks, and Keith forgot to breathe. He gripped Lance too tightly, but only because he needed to make sure he was there, real, whole, all of Lance in his arms and not imaginary.

 

"I love you," Lance said when they broke apart, and he meant it with his whole soul. Allura, silent, reached out and took Lance's hand, pulling him with her away from Keith and into the sea. Keith reached out, but Lance was disappearing too fast.

 

Keith felt his heart following them as he yelled back, "I love you more!"

 

He was left, standing in the surf, with tears streaming down his face, alone again.


	30. Give It Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shiro and Matt talk about their relationship. In the ocean, Allura and Lance prepare for the war.

"We should talk about this."

"I knew you'd say that."

"Well, it's true," Shiro said, sitting down on Matt's bed. It was later in the morning, a few hours after Lance had left. Shiro was worried for Keith, he didn't know when he'd be home, but decided it was best to just leave him be. He figured he could explain why Lance was gone later that day to Matt and Pidge, right now he had to address something else.

 

Matt sat up in his bed, leaning against the headboard. He was shirtless, he always slept that way, and for the first time in a long time, Shiro allowed himself to look at Matt as something different than a best friend. He didn't sleep well last night because of what had happened between the two of them, but not because he was uncomfortable with it. It just felt strange.

 

"What do you wanna know?" Matt asked, shrugging. His hair was longer than Shiro's, and Shiro had a sudden flashback of knotting his fingers in it last night. He blinked hard, trying to clear his head. They hadn't done anything more than kissing, but it was still pretty intense. Shiro's cheeks went hot as he thought about Matt below him, blinking dazedly as Shiro kissed down his neck.

 

"How long?" He asked, trying to keep his mind off the fact that he wanted to kiss him again. How long had Matt wanted to?

 

"Oof..." Matt thought for a minute, "10 years?"

 

Shiro hadn't been expecting that. His head snapped towards Matt, alarmed. "That long?"

 

Matt nodded nonchalantly. "It's no biggie."

 

Shiro ran a hand through his hair, nervous. "I'm sorry," he was grasping straws, trying to think of what to say.

 

Matt readjusted himself on his bed, looking down, "You have nothing to apologize for. I know that I'm a rebound too, so don't worry about breaking my heart or anything."

 

"What?" Shiro asked incredulously, looking at Matt like he was crazy. "You're not a rebound."

 

Matt gave him a doubtful expression. "Allura just dumped you, Shiro. How am I not a rebound."

 

Shiro shook his head, "You're just not, okay?"

 

Matt frowned, "So does that mean we're a thing? Or are we just forgetting about the whole thing?"

 

Shiro sighed, frustrated. "I don't want to forget about the whole thing but... I don't know if I'm ready for another relationship so soon."

 

Matt nodded, "Understandable," then laughed and added, "I've waited this long, so I don't mind waiting more."

 

Shiro stuck out his lips in something that looked like a pout, he felt bad about that. Turning to look back at Matt, Shiro edged forward, biting his lip as he said quietly, "That doesn't mean that we have to stop..." He leaned forward, intent on a kiss, but Matt turned his head, smiling oddly.

 

"Nope. It definitely does mean that we have to stop. I don't want to feel like I'm taking advantage of you, Shiro."

 

In response, Shiro made that same noise, a hum in the back of his throat and leaned back. He was definitely doing his dignified pout thing now.

 

Matt sighed, then took Shiro by the chin so he'd look at him. "Give it a few weeks, bud. A month, if you need it. You're still recovering."

 

...

 

Lance had been beckoned to Alfor's House. He moved slowly, like he was in mud, and almost didn't notice when a group of younger school children approached him.

 

"You're Lance McClain, right?" One of the girls said, hands clasped in front of her chest. They all looked to be a few years younger than him, all excited and giggly.

 

Lance smiled ruefully, nodding. "That's me," he replied, hesitating in the water.

 

"Awesome..." a merboy said in awe as he swam in dizzying circles around Lance's tail.

 

"Can we see your lights?" The first girl said, her pale pink fin floating gently in the currents. Lance noticed that, compared to other mers, she was on the less than average side of luminescence. Her cheek markings were mere streaks, and she hardly had any on her hands. He felt a surge of pity for her- had she just a little bit less, it would be considered a handicap.

 

Lance reached out through his nerve endings and lit his markings, starting from his cheeks and working his way down to the tip of his tail. He was still wearing Keith's shirt, and the lights on his shoulders showed through the fabric. After a few moments, he dimmed his lights and looked solemnly at the children.

 

The first girl was wide-eyed, almost sad, but everyone else was flickering the lights on the tips of their fins. It was a sign of respect, like applause. Lance had been told by Ulaz and Thace that mers in battle always had their fins lit up- a sign of loyalty to their side.

 

"I should get going," Lance said quietly, and the group of kids parted, letting Lance swim by, immediately whispering among themselves as soon as he'd passed. He knew they were talking about him.

 

As Lance made his way up to Alfor's suite, he thought about the events of this morning. As soon as he'd changed back to his mer form underwater, Allura had told him to go back home and stay there until he was called. She had been trying to be stiff, leader-like, but overall ended failing by giving in and hugging Lance tightly. It wasn't his fault, after all.

 

The transition into a mer again had hurt, but it had left Lance feeling better in the long run. As much as he hated to admit it, a salty bathtub was nothing compared to the sting of seawater through his gills, slicing through currents with his sail, diving deeper than a human's ears could stand.

 

Yes, he wasn't going to lie- he loved the ocean. He'd always love the ocean. It was his home, after all. It wasn't the ocean's fault that he'd fallen in love with the land too. More specifically, a boy on land. But thinking about Keith hurt too much, so Lance thought about his family instead. 

 

Apparently, Allura had told his mother about the circumstances, and Elena had been on Allura's side on bringing Lance home immediately. She cried as soon as she same Lance, checking his face, his tail, his fin, making sure he was okay. 

 

The twins tried not to show it- they liked to try to be mature like Lance and Carlos- but Lance could tell that they'd been worried too. Carmen had launched herself into Lance's arms right after Elena had let him go, and Sebastian hugged his tail tightly, swishing the water up into bubbles. 

 

Normally, tail color stayed in the family. Hunk's entire household had varying shades of orange for their tails, and Allura took after her father in royal blue. That was why it was so odd that Lance had a blue tail. Sebastian and Carmen's tails were identical- a dark amber, a comical mix of Carlos' grey tail and Elena's orange-hued gold one. 

 

Lance had thought that he was adopted for most of his teenage years, but every time he brought it up, partially serious, Carlos and Elena laughed, brushing it off. Genetic mutation this, 'from your mother's side' that. He eventually learned to dismiss it, and as beautiful as his brother and sister's tails were, he loved his blue.

 

His mother then made him tell her everything, everything about Keith and how they were together, everything about how sick he'd gotten. She stroked his hair lovingly, nodding understandingly. And suddenly, Lance knew that she understood. She was separated from her love, too. That brought back a pang of missing for his father, who, for all Lance knew, could be in battle at that very moment.

 

Lance sat down on a rock slab as Elena prepared lunch, rubbing the sore spots where his scales had fallen out, thinking about his whole situation. Was he just supposed to go back to school now and pretend that everything was okay? Would he ever see Keith again? And even more, after the incident with changing, would he be able to go up to the surface as usual, again? 

 

Allura had warned him not to change yet, to let himself get used to the salt water and heal back up before he tried changing again, but she looked worried as she said it. There were too many 'what if's and not enough solid answers. Lance was tired of the maybe's. 

 

There was one question that had stayed on his mind though, and now that he was with his mother, who probably knew the answer better than anyone else he knew, he decided to push aside the awkwardness of it and ask. "Mom, how did you know that you loved Dad?"

 

Elena nearly dropped the clams she was holding. Startled, she looked at her son. "How did I know?" she echoed, blinking like a deer caught in headlights. "It's not like an epiphany, I guess. We'd met when we were young, and it just blossomed. I do know that I still love him- just because... I'd do anything for him. Your Dad is hard on you, I know that. And it's unfair. But he only says those things because he cares about you. He wants to keep you safe. Carlos can't handle losing someone else he loves- that's why he's so overprotective. And I don't blame him! Lance, look at what happened to you up there, you could have died."

 

"I lived, though, Mama, and... I learned so much up there. I made friends. Hunk and Allura made friends, too. I don't understand why it has such a bad stigma."

 

Elena paused her cooking and swam over to Lance, putting her hands firmly on Lance's shoulders. "Mijo, no es seguro. It's not safe. We are mers, and we live in the dark underwater so we can be protected by the ocean. Why would you choose to live with the humans? You could die, Lance. Carino, don't you see?"

 

"Mama, you sound like Dad."

 

"And for good reason! Come, mi corazon, mi amor. Quedate aqui."

 

Lance looked down. Maybe she was right. Maybe he only saw the good side of the human world. Maybe he just conveniently visited the kindest city in the world, and everything else was a wasteland of hurt and anger. The truth was, he didn't know. He had no clue.

 

...

 

Upon arriving at the entrance of Alfor's house, Lance was greeted by two guards. Lance knew them well, but they were still required to go announce his arrival and get permission to bring him inside. Their tridents shone, deadly sharp. 

 

In school, everyone learned how to use a trident, practicing with blunt staffs. Lance had been top of his class in combat, second only to Allura (but she didn't count- she'd been training with a staff since she was two), and he prided himself with it. Of course, he used his speed and flexibility to his advantage, so maybe he wasn't the best in the actual technique, but more of the way he could encircle his enemy and use his staff to knock them from all sides. 

 

But, to be honest, he wasn't that strong. Sure, he was a deadly sharpshooter with a spear or bow and arrow when fishing, but hand-to-hand combat was tricky for him since he lacked the muscles. And that's why his dreams of becoming a great hero, a soldier, a paladin, were all crushed. Mostly by bullies. 

 

Oh yes, the bullies. First, it was just little pebbles that they slingshotted to the back of his head in class. Then it was stealing his satchel and smashing his nail polish, his shells. While the mer community was supportive of queerness and sexuality and gender choice, of course, there were still mindsets that discouraged it. 

 

So who did they target? The mer with the most luminescence of the village, the fastest, the class clown, the top of the class. All because he said that he could like boys too. His mother told him that they were just jealous, but she lost her shit when Lance came home with fire coral rashes all over his arms, a result of being shoved into the bad patch of the reef. 

 

She rocketed to Lance's school and demanded consequences, seething. It was one of the only times Lance had seen her so angry. Carlos had taken the nurturing role then, which was odd, and packed Lance's stings and cuts with clay, then wrapping them in seaweed. 

 

Lance drifted back into the present as one of the guards returned, moving out of the doorway to let Lance inside. He thanked them with a nod. 

 

Through the dark tunnel that led into the living room... Allura was floating upright in the middle of the living room, and she was holding something in one of her firsts. Turning, she noticed Lance in the doorway and beckoned him in. 

 

"Lance... It's good to see you again. How is your family doing?" She spoke quickly, nervously. 

 

"They're alright. Worried for my dad, but alright. What's going on, Ally?"

 

Allura sighed, frowning, "The war isn't going well for us. For our side. We need support from Lotor, and I think I'm the only one who can do that. He trusts me. I trust him, for that matter. But that's another story."

 

She paused, then took Lance's hand. "I need to go to the war front. We can get there by midnight if we leave now."

 

By midnight? That fast? How on Earth...? But Allura had said 'we'. "What do you mean, 'we'? How do I fit in?"

 

"That's why I brought you here, Lance. I talked to my dad about it before he left, and he agreed. If you'll agree," Allura held out what she had been clutching to her chest, and Lance's eyes nearly popped out of his head. "I want you to be my personal guard."


	31. The Harbor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Allura and Lance leave to go to the war with the help of a stranger

Lance slowly lifted the necklace from Allura's palm, eyes wide. He didn't even know that it was in her family. Coran was Alfor's personal guard, and he'd become Allura's teacher when she was born. Lance had never really asked if Allura had a guard too- he just assumed that Coran would be "passed down" as the family's guard.

But now Allura was giving him the necklace, _The Necklace_ , and he was almost afraid to touch it. This had been passed down for as long as the Altean line had been around, the family crest. It was simple, really, a 'V', but the tops of the points extended in. Lance had seen it drawn everywhere through his life. In the coral reef, a gifted mermaid once grew a patch of flowers and seagrass into the shape.

Lance had learned in History class- nearly 1/8 of the major mermaidian communities across the ocean were led by a descendant of the original Altean family. It was an ancient bloodline filled with the luminescence of leaders. Lance had laughed at the thought of a family reunion.

The job of a personal guard was given to the closest, worthiest friend of the leader of a community and their line. They were to protect and honor the bloodline, serve (but not in a weird way). And now Allura was asking Lance to be her guard and he really didn't know if she was asking the right person.

"Lance?" Allura asked. She looked stressed as ever, and he realized that she was waiting for his response.

"Yeah, of- I mean- _Yes,_  yes, holy shit." Relief flooded over her face as Allura broke into a smile and pulled Lance into a hug, somehow attaching the necklace at the same time. Lance felt the weight on his collarbone and was hit with the responsibility of the whole thing. He inhaled shakily.

"Good, because I already have your trident." Lance froze, sail, flashing open.

"Are you serious?" he asked into her shoulder. Allura pulled back and grinned devilishly.

"Be right back," she said happily, then bolted into another room. Lance heard the muffled clatter of metal on stone, Allura groaning something that sounded like, "Quiznak!", and then watched her reemerge with the most beautiful trident Lance had seen.

Normally, the tridents that belonged to the guards were undecorated, straight, six-foot bars of metal with a three-pronged spear at the end. Sure, they were pretty, powerful, strong and intimidating. But the only other trident Lance had seen like this was Coran's ancient relic of a trident, engraved with seastars and bubbles and, of course, the Altean insignia.

But in Lance's opinion, this was even better. Allura placed the trident gently in his hands, then moving back to let him admire it. The metal was a shiny grey-blue, smooth and sturdy. Hues of periwinkle and sky-blue shone through as Lance twisted the trident around in his hands.

The top was the impressive part, though. Of course, it had three barbed points, dangerously sharp. Built into the prongs was the Altea crest, the V, laying in the two outermost points. There were no fancy etchings, no scratches at all, but there were pearls. Naturally a light, pastel pink, and wound by a wire around the prongs, the strands were the most beautiful adornment Lance had ever seen on a trident. He motioned for Allura to back up a little, and she did, giving him space to test it out.

The light metal made the staff easy to handle, and Lance was able to keep his light agility with the balance of the trident. _Parry, thrust, duck, strike_. Lance felt giddy with joy. Allura seemed pretty proud herself.

"Not to be insensitive..." she started, smiling nervously, "but we should really go."

...

"A boat?" Lance said questionably.

Allura nodded, flipping her hair out of her face. "He should be here any minute..."

The two bobbed under the water, underneath the pier in the harbor, right next to a small vessel. Above them, people walked and talked over the wooden slats of the boardwalk.

It was evening, too dark to see beneath the murky water, but Lance was still worried about being seen. After spending so much time up in the human world... it was odd to be just below it.

"Who?" Lance asked, just as a pair of feet dipped off the side of the pier into the water. Lance looked up, several meters below the surface, and noticed a tattoo of an anchor on the left ankle. "Is that him?"

Nodding, Allura slowly swam up to the surface, slow and careful- ready to retreat at any moment. The two of them surfaced beside the feet at the same time. Looking up, Lance was met with a man, probably early-fifties, wearing a suit and tie. His leather shoes were placed beside him, untied.

Without moving his head to look down at the two mers, the man began speaking. "Good evening, Ms. Altea and company. It is too crowded to have you change to your human forms on deck right now, so I'll throw out a rope for you. Grab hold of it. I'll tow you until we're a good distance away, and then you can come on deck." He had a thick, Spanish accent and dark, curly hair that flopped over his forehead. Something about him seemed vaguely familiar.

"Affirmative," Allura replied, so softly that only Lance and the boatsman could hear. He nodded, then took his feet out of the water and walked over to the boat. Lance and Allura ducked back under water to wait for the long tow rope that he surreptitiously threw into the water behind the boat.

The two mers took hold of it, Lance doing so one-handedly as he held his trident, Allura beside him. "Ally, who is he?" Lance asked, waiting for the man to untie the motorboat from the dock and prepare for leaving.

"His name's Ernesto. He's a mer who was changed by Lotor who lives here now- his old community is by an island somewhere southwest of the Dark Kingdom stronghold. He agreed to drive us to the warfront because if we can win this war, then the stronghold will lose too, and his community will be safe again." Allura paused, "All communities will be safe again."

Lance nodded, rubbing his thumb nervously on the shaft of the trident. It felt like he'd been stuck in a current ever since he'd stepped into the ocean again. He used to think that his village was so calm, that nothing happened there, but now it felt like the opposite.

A hundred or so mers has left from his community to go fight in the war, including his father. He'd been ripped from Keith, become Allura's personal guard, and now they were diving right into the heart of battle, completely unaware of what would happen.

He looked down at himself; he was still wearing Keith's shirt. Smiling sadly, Lance rubbed his bracelet, the one Keith had given him, and hoped that Keith was wearing his as well. The danger of the situation was immeasurable, more than Lance had even thought of before. It was hard to think that just this morning, he'd been laying with Keith, peaceful, unaware that he was about to engage in a war between a century-long feud of Mers and the Galra.

The rope yanked taught, and Lance tightened his grip as the boat peeled off of the deck, weaving slowly through the boats of the crowded harbor. Allura's bright hair trailed behind her in the water, and her face was set. Lance decided to tell her now, "Allura, whatever happens down there, you've gotta know that I love you no matter what and I'll try my hardest to be the best personal guard for you."

Allura looked over at Lance, smiling, "I know, Lance. I already know you're the best guard I could ask for."

...

Water rushed by Lance's face as the boat picked up speed, leaving the harbor, glowing with lights, behind quickly. After a few minutes, the boat slowed, then stopped, and Lance and Allura swam up to the back of the small boat where a ladder was positioned. Allura climbed up the rungs using only her hands, the muscles in her biceps rippling. Lance treaded water beneath the ladder, waiting for her.

Another wrung and Allura heaved herself up onto the deck, barely having enough time to call "don't look!" At Ernesto and Lance before she'd transformed into her human form, immediately wrapping herself in a towel from the bench next to her. She leaned over the side of the boat, looking down at Lance, and held out her hand for his trident. He passed it up, then prepared himself to climb onto the boat.

However, as soon as heaved himself onto the deck, the warm, summer night air warming his wet back, he didn't change. Confused, Lance looked up at Allura, who was covering her mouth with her hand, shock covering her features.

"Well, this could be a minor inconvenience," Lance muttered, slapping the deck with his tail. Ernesto just stared at him, his tail, his face, silent. Wow, he was a real help.

Biting her lip (and somehow managing to not let her towel slip from around her torso, Allura heaved Lance up onto the bench, then headed below deck to change into a spare change of clothes she'd brought in her satchel.

Ernesto was still staring, mouth hanging open. Lance quirked an eyebrow at him.

"Lance?"


	32. Ancestry

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The mysterious sailor informs Lance of his true heritage

"Yes...?" Lance replied slowly, looking at Ernesto with curiosity. 

 

"Lance McClain?" Ernesto's hands had frozen on the boat's steering wheel.

 

"Yes again."

 

"Oh... oh, my god. Lance, you- I'm- you're so-?" Ernesto scrambled to stop the boat, hands shaking as he hurried over to Lance, who was slightly freaked out. Ernesto carefully cupped Lance's cheeks in his hands, looking at him closely. "You're really..." in a millisecond, Lance was being crushed against the man's chest, squirming a bit.

 

"Do I know you?" He asked, alarmed. The man pulled back, nodding. He was crying.

 

"It's me. Your uncle. Federico."

 

"What?!" Allura burst out, suddenly appearing on the deck, wearing a short sundress. Her hair was dripping over her shoulders and back.

 

Lance's felt like his whole head was being flipped upside down. What the hell was going on? "My uncle?" He asked, confused as hell.

 

"I know it sounds crazy, I do. Ms. Altea, please sit." She did quickly, taking one of Lance's hands in her own.

 

Ernesto- or, now Federico, talked quickly. "When I was banished, they sent me to Hawaii. I never thought I'd see my family again. So I applied to become a human. As long as I wasn't a mer, I could go anywhere I pleased. I could go back home to Santa Monica, I could live there and hope to see one of you. By a stroke of luck, I was chosen, and the witch guy, Lotor, changed me so I could come home. I've been waiting there for years, always keeping my eyes and ears open. It's been so hard, Lance, not seeing you, Carlos, Elena, your brother and sister, and everyone else in the village. But now you're here! I've missed you too much. Too much." Federico hugged Lance again, and it felt like his father. It felt so much like Carlos that Lance couldn't help but hug back, squeezing his eyes shut.

 

Allura was the one to break up the moment. Lance could tell that she was antsy- he didn't blame her. "I'm sorry to have to say this, but Mr. Federico, we really should get going."

 

Federico jumped back, embarrassed, and nodded at Allura, almost like a salute. "Yes, sure, of course, I'm sorry."

 

For the next few hours, Federico pelted Lance with questions, making him talk about his father, his family in general. He was mind-boggled when Lance told him how he'd been selected to stay on land, and even more surprised when Lance told him about Keith. His uncle had been completely understanding, of course, ruffling Lance's hair and saying, "You take after me."

 

Federico also mentioned that Lance would probably be able to change back and first as usual soon, he just had to heal some more first. "You put so much stress on your human form that your mer form started to fall into disrepair. So now that it's healing, it doesn't want to reverse the process by letting you change again. I'm sure if you really wanted to change, you could, you'd just have to do some meditation stuff and think really hard about it, I guess. I've seen it happen before, back on Hawaii." That was a relief.

 

The boat that the three rode in was a small motorboat with two powerful propellers, speeding across the inky, black water. Federico sat in front on a white swivel chair, hands on the wheel, and the bench that Lance and Allura sat on was on the other side of the boat, parallel. The small deck had a hatch with a ladder that led down to an even smaller cabin with a hammock and a bathroom.

 

They'd been going at a pretty fast pace for the past three hours, but Federico was in control, and he seemed to know exactly where he was going. However, he mentioned a few times that this was probably illegal, which was worrying.

 

When Federico stopped drilling Lance for a few minutes, Lance took the opportunity to ask Allura a question that had been nagging him for a while. "Allura, why did you choose me to be your guard?"

 

Federico laughed, "Because you're family, silly!" Allura stood abruptly.

 

Lance blinked. "Pardon?"

 

Federico looked over at the two mers, and regret dropped over his face. " _Mierda_. Do you not know?"

 

Allura's face was stone. "We were planning on discussing it once the war was over," she said cooly, and Federico ducked his head, ashamed.

 

"What are you talking about?" Lance asked warily. He didn't think he could handle another surprise that night. Already, he was overwhelmed.

 

Allura shot another glare in Federico's direction, then sat down next to Lance, inhaling shakily. "Well, Lance," she started, "There's something that Father has been meaning to tell you for a while now."

 

Lance felt his stomach drop. No. "You're freaking me out, Ally."

 

Allura, agitated and nervous, spoke slowly. "Lance, don't be mad. I didn't know either. Father told me right before he left. It's not something I ever wanted to have to tell you, I wanted to wait until Father could, but I guess I need to tell you now."

 

"Have you ever wondered why you have so much luminescence, Lance?" Of course, he had. How could he not wonder? He didn't want to sound insensitive, but neither of his parents were especially gifted when it came to luminescence. It was just something that was accepted. Genetic mutation this, 'from your mother's side' that. Just like his tail.

 

Something about this talk was going in a much more serious direction that Lance had anticipated. He didn't know if he wanted to listen to it.

 

"You come from a very powerful family, Lance." Allura bit her lip, looking pained, "Not Elena and Carlos. You come from my heritage, the Altea line. Your father is Alfor's brother. You're my cousin, Lance."

 

Lance's mouth went dry. Please, no. He couldn't handle this. Laughing humorlessly, Lance was able to choke out, "What?"

 

Allura kept eye contact. "Your father, my uncle, Aldridge Altea, was a powerful leader. He was married to a mermaid named Catrin, and they didn't live very far from our village. When they had you, everyone was excited. You were going to be the heir to the community, and I was going to be the heir of my father's."

 

Allura's breath shuddered, "And then there was a shark attack." Lance felt his skin grow cold, goosebumps raising on his arms and back. He didn't want to hear this. But he did. "Your father and mother were so brave, Lance." She's silent for a few minutes.

 

"You were safe at home. You were 2. After your parents passed, Father took you under his custody, but your parents, Elena and Carlos, that is, told him they'd be more than happy to raise you as their own. And so they did.

 

"You still have the rights to your home village, Lance, and they'll wait for you if you want to be the leader. I've met the current council there before- the ruler there right now was your father's right hand man." Allura spoke softly, comfortingly, but even still, Lance felt lightheaded from overwhelming shock.

 

He was Altean. Not only that, he was adopted, his real parents were dead, and he could be a leaders of his home village. He was Allura's guard, they were going into the warfront to make a deal with the witch Lotor, and they were being driven by his uncle who was now a human that was banished decades ago. His father was fighting and still thought Lance was mad at him, he'd been separated from the boy he loved, and there was a high chance that he wouldn't survive this battle. He couldn't change into a human at will, he carried a trident, and he had the blood of an ancient family of leaders.

 

Lance's eyes rolled up into his head. Everything went black.

 

...

 

"How close are we?"

 

"About an hour. Get some some sleep, Ms. Altea."

 

"Once Lance wakes up."

 

Lance opened his eyes gingerly, rubbing his hands over his face. His gills and tail felt dry as he lifted his head off Allura's shoulder.

 

"Hey, Lance," Allura said softly, rubbing his back with her cold palm. He nodded hello, yawning.

 

"Back from the dead," Federico joked exuberantly. He was still excited that he was with his nephew. After so long... Lance thought that he and Carlos were too different to be brothers. He laughed anyways.

 

Looking out over the ocean, Lance sighed. Now that he was awake, Allura felt comfortable to fall asleep, leaning heavily against Lance's arm. Federico has quieted down a considerably, focusing on the dark stretch of ocean. If Lance squinted, he could make out faint lights to the left of the boat, far in the distance. When he asked what they were, Federico told him that those were the harbors.

 

"Gotta keep them in sight so I don't end up in Australia," Federico said, putting on another burst of speed. Lance jolted back, wind whipping in his ears. He wondered how he'd slept so well while it was so loud.

 

Keith's shirt was drying out, and was now just a little damp. Lance rubbed his bracelet again, sighing. If he couldn't change... Lance frowned. He didn't want to think about that right now. He had more important issues at the moment. Like how the fuck he and Allura were supposed to make a deal with the prince of the Dark Kingdom.

 

One hour passed quickly with his mind preoccupied and Allura sleeping quietly on his shoulder. He knew that when she woke up, she'd blame herself for being groggy, but he wasn't about to wake her up. They still had a long night in front of them.

 

Lance blinked out of his daze as Federicoslowed the boat. He nudged Allura awake and she startled, blinking rapidly. "Did I really fall asleep?" She asked nervously, cursing under her breath. Lance smiled softly.

 

"We're here. The battle is going on a mile that way," Federico pointed to the right, away from the harbor. Lance felt his nerves tighten. "I'll wait here until 5am. If you're not back here by then, I'll leave." Federico walked over to Lance and took over a watch on his wrist. It was blue, scratched, with four buttons around the face. Lance looked at the time. 12:17.

 

Federico leaned down and hugged Lance tightly, smelling like shampoo and deodorant. Lance closed his eyes tightly. "I'll be back soon," he said.

 

"You'd better," Federico replied fiercely. He stepped back, shook hands with Allura, and then helped to carry Lance to the ladder that led over the side of the boat. With a heave, Lance slid into the cold water. The ocean washed over his gills, his tail, his skin, refreshing him and wrapping him in a cold blanket of security as he sucked in water through his gills, breathing deeply.

 

A few seconds later, there was a splash, a flurry of bubbles, and Allura was in the water next to him. She pulled off her dress as soon as she'd transformed and surfaced, throwing the sopping fabric over the side of the boat.

 

"Alright," she said as soon as she dunked back underwater, "Ready to go win a war?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> want to put a disclaimer here. Lance is bilingual. I am not, by far. I take spanish class but that's the extent of my knowledge. I use google translate and a spanish dictionary and try my best to include a diverse character in this fic. So please, if you're spanish, or if you're fluent, and you see an error, please tell me about it, but please don't be nasty about it. Many of the bilingual speakers here have been nice about corrections, but I've gotten some pretty explicit comments in my inbox about my wording. I'm just trying my best here, guys, but thank you for the respectful speakers who've corrected me gracefully. I do appreciate it.


	33. Into Battle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Allura and Lance plunge straight into the heart of the war to seek out Lotor

Allura and Lance swam to the bottom of the ocean, eyes adjusting quickly to the darkness. Lance held his trident tightly, alert and prepared. Raising their sails to their full height, Lance began to light his luminescence, but Allura stopped him. "We don't want to attract attention."

 

Sliding stealthily across the sandy bottom, Lance and Allura picked up speed as the floor began to dip lower. After a few minutes of swimming, Lance began to see faint lights in the distance, blinking in and out. He squinted and stopped Allura from moving forward with a hand to her shoulder.

 

"That looks like the battle," he said quietly and she nodded in response.

 

"We set up camp closer to the harbor, but the Galra camp should be just beyond the front. Lotor is there- he's been camping out here for quite a while. We need to get to his cove before the fighting gets too bad. He'll be able to help us." Allura sounded sure of herself, and Lance could only hope that Lotor would actually be willing to help.

 

"We should go around, then," Lance said, pointing to the right of the flashing lights which he could only assume were luminescence.

 

Allura looked at him sharply, eyes set. "No. We fight our way through. This is a war, Lance. You take the left, I'll take the right, and stay right next to me. Plow right through and keep moving. Do not stop, not for anything."

 

Lance steeled himself, nodding. Allura was right. "Full luminescence now, show your heritage, Lance. You're an Altean. You're strong. Fight like one."

 

Allura gathered her hair back into a ponytail, pulled two daggers out of her satchel, and rocketed forward. Lance was right behind her.

 

As the two mers quickly approached the battlefront, and Lance realized the situation. Mers against Galra. Hundreds and hundreds of finned-beings, the muffled clash of metal underwater, battle cries and screams. Lance smelled blood in the water. And if there was blood, sharks were soon to come.

 

Lance had never seen the Galra up close. But now, as he and Allura zeroed in, as fear, true fear, crept over his heart, Lance realized why they were so notorious.

 

Purple-grey skin and flashing yellow eyes, their faces were set in rage, white fangs showing through their lips. Their tails were black and like a shark's- the fin was vertical instead of horizontal. They had luminescence too, theirs purple. It glowed eerily in stripes along their tails, on their necks, on the tips of their ears, which were pointed. Instead of sails, they had large, sharp dorsal fins, which had thin outlines of purple light.

 

They fought with long, curved blades as sharp as the tridents and spears the mers fought with, and damn, did they know how to use them. Agile and fast, their combat evenly matched the mers, which was good in its own way. Fewer casualties, but more of a fight. Eventually, one side would tire out, and Lance could only pray it wasn't the mers.

 

As he scanned the battle, for a split second, he thought he saw two Galran's fighting, but then realized that one of them was a Blade, and he felt a surge of hope. The Marmora were elite, stronger than the Galra even though their numbers were few. He had hope.

 

Allura and Lance launched into the battle, and everything slowed to slow-motion. Lance watched as pairs around him fought, a mer and a Galran, shrieking and screaming, tails churning the water so much it was hard to swim.

 

Lance flipped through openings, under tails, and struck out with his trident. Most Galran's were able to see the attack and dodge the sharp points with a frightened shriek, but Lance was able to hit his weapon over the head of a galran soldier, promptly leaving him unconscious. Lance didn't stick around to watch the soldier fall to the sand.

 

He was nearly halfway through the mess of fighting, both above and below him, when he saw a flash of familiar white luminescence. Looking up, Lance saw his father. Carlos was surrounded by two Galra, being circled like prey as they struck out. He already had a large cut along his ribs.

 

Ignoring Allura's orders to stay close, Lance zoomed upwards, flipping his trident around and ramming the butt of the weapon into the stomach of one of the soldiers, yelling out in a crazed cry as he shoved the soldier up and away from his father. Spinning, he screamed as he whipped his trident towards the face of the other soldier. This one ducked. Smart. Then skedaddled, zooming down and out of sight in the fray.

 

Lance looked back at Carlos, who was floating there, stunned, and Lance smiled at him, genuinely, before rocketing off, not stopping before he was out of the battle, which took a surprisingly long time. He hadn't sized up the battle accurately- it was giant.

 

Allura was waiting for him on the other side of the fighting, on her own as she battled a Galran. Lance powered towards her, trident aimed at the soldier, and watched in satisfaction as the purple-skinned warrior swam off.

 

"Let's go!" Allura shouted, then took off towards the huge clusters of rocks in the near distance. Lance was right beside her, adrenaline pumping. His gills felt like they might rip at how hard he was breathing.

 

The two skimmed the sandy floor as they approached the rocks, which were now recognizable as giant makeshift homes, huge rock igloos like the ones in the village back home, times 10.

 

The rock homes were empty, though, everyone at the battle. Those who were unable or unwilling to fight were back at the main kingdom, waiting for news of the battle. But after seeing how evenly-matched everyone was... Lance had no clue who would actually win. Did it come down to which leader died first? He hadn't even seen Alfor and Zarkon.

 

"He should be in the back," Allura called over to Lance, who nodded. They rose off the sandy floor and glided over the rocks, searching for something that could befit a prince. Allura was the one to see it first in the dark, murky water.

 

A small structure surrounded by flowing strands of seaweed, guarded by two soldiers. Allura pointed, and the two slowed, looking as majestic as they could while heaving for breath. The guards, who had bulging muscles and giant swords, eyed the two mers with disgust.

 

Allura was composed. "My name is Allura Altea. I'm here to see Prince Lotor. He should be expecting me." One of the guards stepped aside to let Allura in, but the other blocked Lance when he tried to follow.

 

"Who're you?" She grunted, shark tail churning the water beneath her.

 

Lance held his ground (and his trident, tightly). "Lance Altea." It sounded foreign on his tongue. He flashed his luminescence like he was trying to prove a point. The guard growled, then let him in.

 

There wasn't much of a hallway before Lance and Allura were right in the room with none other than the Dark Prince himself. The room was more of a cave, with a high, rocky ceiling made of piled rocks and a wide floor.

 

All over the walls were shelves of bottles and containers of glowing liquid and other anatomical abnormalities. In the middle of the room was a big stone slab, flat on top, which seemed to be serving as a table, and it had a few stone tablets and other random objects on it.

 

The prince's back was to Allura and Lance as he pushed through a cluttered shelf on the wall behind the table, and they could hear him muttering to himself quietly. Allura cleared her throat, and Lotor whirled, nearly dropping the corked bottle of something he was holding. It was dark green and looked like barf.

 

Lotor's eyes were bright with surprise as he surveyed his two visitors. His hair was long and shockingly white, and his skin was light lilac, smoothing into his black fin. What surprised Lance, though, was that Lotor almost seemed to be half mer.

 

He had the same luminescence markings on his cheeks, glowing white, and he had a sail instead of a dorsal fin. It was all very unnerving- lance had never heard before that Lotor was half Galra, half mer. Was that even possible?

 

"Guests," Lotor greeted loudly, grinning and holding his arms out. Lance held his trident tighter, jaw set. "You must be the Allura. It's good to finally meet you in person," Lotor said happily, holding out a hand for Allura to shake. She did, and it made Lance uncomfortable- could they really trust this guy?

 

 

"And you must be...?" Lotor trailed off, looking expectantly at Lance. He realized that Lotor's scleras were yellow instead of white, and his irises were a deep indigo. That was odd too- the Galra had purely yellow eyes and mers had white scleras, like humans.

 

Lance decided that was another thing he could add to his evidence that Lotor was some sort of hybrid. Maybe it was a secret that everyone but him knew. It would be logical- he wondered if everyone else knew that he was an adopted royal.

 

"This is Lance- my friend and my personal guard," Allura introduced, which Lance quirked an eyebrow at. Why wouldn't she introduce him as a fellow royal? Was she hiding something from Lotor? Maybe he was overreacting.

 

Lotor held a hand out to Lance, and when they shook, Lotor's hand was cold and strong, and his purple skin was a bright contrast against Lance's dark brown. Lance clenched his fist around his trident. He didn't trust this guy.

 

"Make yourself at home, please," Lotor motioned towards two rock stools leaning up against the wall, but Allura shook her head.

 

"I'm sorry to decline, but we're here to make a deal."

 

Lotor raised his brows, then hopped up to sit on his table crossing his arms and gazing serenely at Allura. His white hair, floating around his head like a halo, made him look like a ghost. His fin, translucent and dark grey, waved in the water below him.

 

"A deal, eh? You definitely sound like an Altean now." Now it was Allura's turn to cross her arms over her scale-covered chest. Lotor laughed, signaling that it was a joke, "But I'm intrigued. What could I possibly give you, princess?" Lance wasn't sure if Lotor was using the title in a demeaning tone. He stayed silent.

 

"We need you to kill your father."


	34. The Dark Prince

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lotor and Lance make a treacherous deal

Lotor was surprisingly calm about Allura's wish.

 

Lotor mused over the offer, his long, eerie white hair floating around him. Lance's gills fluttered anxiously- he was nervous for Ulaz and Thace and the rest of the Blade, as well as the rest of the army from the other communities all over the country. He was worried for his father.

 

"I'll need something in return," Lotor finally said, rubbing his thumb over a glass vial on a chain around his neck. Lance was shocked to hear this. Yes, he and his father fought sometimes, but it wasn't like he'd ever consider murdering him. Lotor looked Allura up-and-down pointedly, and Lance shuddered in disgust.

 

"Absolutely not," Allura said firmly, wrap ping her arms around her stomach in distaste. Jeez, she'd never taken Lotor for a perv before.

 

"Oh, you're too quick to judge. I wasn't requesting that. More your royal quintes- luminescence." Allura frowned, her patterns glowing indignantly.

 

"How much?"

 

"Enough to complete the process... You see, in order to fulfill my request, I'd have to take enough to strip you of your mermaidian form. If I took my desired amount, it would be the exact process I perform when I change other mers every year. Just, this time it would be from a royal, which is said to be many times more powerful.

 

"I'd use it to complete the weapon I've been working on, the only thing that can really kill my father. No normal, mundane commoner's Quintessence would work for this. We need magic, your magic in particular."

 

Lance, furious, swam forward. "Over my dead body," he hissed, his sail raising threateningly. He tipped his trident towards Lotor, seething. He felt his sparks pulsing beneath his shirt.

 

"Then we have no deal," Lotor said, leaning back over his table. "I need all the power I can get to defeat my father. It's not such an easy task as piercing his heart. He has enough quintessence pulsing through him to regenerate a limb if he desired, I'm guessing. The man is pure madness, but he's more powerful than your little army can handle. Believe me, I want rid of him as much as you do, but I can't do it with my own two hands. Despite all my training, my endless work, I'm still a toothpick. So no, if I don't have that Quintessence, I cannot defeat him and your army will fall within the hour."

 

Allura grabbed Lance's arm, turning him away from Lotor and speaking in a low voice. "I have to do it, Lance. For the good of the people, I'd gladly give myself."

 

Lance shook his head vehemently. "No," he whispered. "Never." then looked up at Lotor, unknown emotions seeping from his every pore, "Take mine."

 

Lotor looked like he could laugh. "Yours? You're a mere commoner! Miss Allura has more power in her pinky than you have in your entire being. What makes you so special?"

 

"Lance, no-" Lance pulled off his shirt and let his energy flow to his luminescence, igniting every spot, every stripe, every blotch on his pure light blue, fluorescent self. He was glowing, radiating.

 

Lotor's eyes widened and he swam forward, so close their chests and tails brushed. He took Lance's chin in his hand and stared deep into his eyes. "I'm Altean as well," Lance said quietly, unafraid of Lotor. Jutting his chin out, he spoke confidently, "Son of Aldridge and Catrin Altea."

 

"I don't doubt it," Lotor replied, and his eyes were the only thing Lance could see. "Are you sure?" His voice was loud and echoey, and Lance couldn't break contact.

 

Lance paused. What did he have here? His tail. His ocean. His friends. His family. An opportunity to become the leader of a village. A legacy. The whole ocean, cupped in his palms.

 

And what did he have on land? His legs. The ground. His friends. Federico. An opportunity to do anything he wanted to. Keith.

 

And the only solution to save the ocean.

 

Lance nodded once. Then, everything went black.

 

...

 

The water was warm and breezy, almost like wind, over Lance's skin. His eyelids fluttered open and he was in total darkness. Someone put a hand on his shoulder and he whirled, surprised. Lotor. He seemed to be radiating light, golden and blue and white. His purple skin looked pale, and his eyes were soft and wide. "This won't hurt."

 

His hands danced over Lance's shoulders, soft fingertips touching every glowing blue freckle of luminescence. Quintessence. Whatever that meant. Lance couldn't remember why he was here? Why was he here?

 

The black water took away his memories, his inhibitions. He looked at his shoulders and watched in mild fascination as Lotor began pulling his freckles out. With his hand over Lance's shoulder, the blue pinpoints slowly raised off Lance's skin and gathered together into a growing, blue orb, which floated just above his skin. 

 

Lotor moved down Lance's arm, running his hand slowly over Lance's skin, just above it. Lance didn't realize that he had so much Quintessence until he saw the light coming from every pore, growing in concentrated intensity as it was sucked into the larger orb that collected all the small fragments of his blue self. 

 

Lance was impossibly calm, warm, and felt safe in Lotor's care. Lotor paused from his work, looked up at Lance, and snapped his fingers. Just ahead of them, like a flashlight in a forest, a bright screen appeared. Well, more of an apparition. It didn't really have defined edges, it just faded out.

 

"They're your mer memories," Lotor murmured in his soft voice. Lance smiled vaguely. He watched.

 

There he was, a baby, curled up in a kind-looking woman's arms, as she looked down at him in her lap, stroking his forehead. Catrin. Who Lance could only assume was his father, Aldridge, was behind them, smiling like a father should. Proudly. Lovingly. Lance tried to think of Carlos and Elena, but his mind drifted back to the light.

 

The screen flickered, and it changed to a new memory. Lance as a young toddler, trying to power his tail like his cousins did, but only getting a few feet off the ground, little tail churning up the sand below him. His luminescence glowed indignantly as he tried, again and again, to swim right. 

 

Again, a flicker, and this time, Lance was craning his neck around to look at the first spike on his back, the start of his sail, with more to come. 

 

His first time with legs, nearly drowning in shock.

 

Learning to walk on the beach after dark with his father.

 

His parents introducing him to his new siblings with soft voices and kind smiles. Lance remembered saying, 'I'm gonna be the best big brother'. 

 

Lance and Hunk and Allura weaving baskets, laughing. 

 

Seeing Keith for the first time.

 

In the tub, when Keith saw him as himself for the first time.

 

Reporting back to the community.

 

"Swim With Me?" Keith's arms around him in the ocean.

 

In the tub as Keith looked after him.

 

Having to swim away.

 

Lotor collected from one arm, then the other, then moves from the tip of his fin, up his tail, through his sail, up his spine and ribs, and over his collarbone until all that remained was Lance's markings on his cheeks. They glowed. Happiness. 

 

"He's your inamorato," Lotor mused like he was surprised. Upon Lance's puzzled look, Lotor sighed, "True love, you know? See, this isn't so bad, you'll be with him."

 

Lance felt weak. He couldn't see his lower half. He smiled anyways. "Keith," he sighed. He felt drowsy. 

 

Lotor pressed his thumbs to Lance's cheeks and inhaled, closing his eyes. "You'll be alright, young one."

 

...

 

Allura watched nervously as Lotor held onto Lance's head, both of them as still as statues. She wanted to stop them, take back the sacrifice, think of another way out, but she didn't want to try to push Lotor away and end up hurting Lance. So she floated right beside him, watching Lance's eyes go haywire beneath his eyelids. 

 

She nearly screamed as he dissolved in gold light and her hand passed right through where his back had just been. Lotor was holding something in his hand, grimacing. 

 

She was about to start yelling at him, but Lotor held up a hand, "Please, don't. I have a migraine. Lance is fine, I sent him back to his uncle's ship. Let's get this good and done with so that you can go back with them." Lotor placed the object in his hand into Allura's palm, "Don't drop it," he muttered, irritated.

 

Allura looked down at the orb she held and realized with a tremor that it was the exact same color as Lance's luminescence. She was holding Lance's essence right now, everything that separated him from the human world, everything that connected him to the mer world, to his legacy, to her and everyone else who loved him.

 

She was holding Altean quintessence and everything that made Lance, Lance. She nearly dropped it at the thought of that. Instead, she looked up at Lotor, who was rummaging around in a back room which was connected to the main room. 

 

He came out with a dangerous-looking sword that probably tripled as three other weapons as well. It was about 4 feet long, black, and had these odd empty wells along the shaft, as long as a line down the center of the blade.

 

"Galra technology," Lotor said over his shoulder to Allura, "May I have the quintessence?" 

 

...

 

Lotor looked like an actual prince and not a weird, mystical witch as he swam towards the battle slowly, holding the sword by his side, Allura on his opposite.  They scanned the fighters for Zarkon's presence and found him almost immediately. He sat on a large rock behind the fighters, guarded by three, looking intently at the battle. 

 

Allura could feel Zarkon's power from here. It made her sick to her stomach. Yes, she might not completely trust Lotor, not after the previous events of the night, but she'd be worried for anyone who wanted to face that kind of power.

 

But Lotor looked confident, and she put all her faith in him as he gave her a final, straight-lipped look, then turned to his father, readied himself, and charged.

 

If he won, this all would be over.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i wanna thank you now, while im delirious from sleep deprivation, for sticking by my side through this story. some have you guys have been here since the first chapter, some of you just arrived. wherever you are in the mix, i love and appreciate you so, so, so much. you guys make me so excited to publish chapters, i get so happy when i see you guys excited about a scene or laughing at something one of the characters have said. you're truly the best. 
> 
> sorry for getting sappy, im good at that lol


	35. Real-Life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance goes home, finally

Allura heaved herself up onto the deck of the boat and she saw Lance dizzily stumble forward, helping her up. Federico stood too, obviously anxious. Lance handed her a towel as her tail split and she smiled at him as he worried over her, all mumble-y and sweet.

 

"We won," she said to no one in particular. It was true- after an intense, bloody battle between Zarkon and Lotor, the prince was able to get a one-up and ended up slaying his beast of his father. The battle between the Galra and the Mers stopped then, everyone just drifting.

 

They'd all expected Alfor to be the one to battle Zarkon, not the Galran's own son. But the outcome was the same either way- the Mers won the war. Not only did that mean that the Galra were no longer able to pose a threat, it meant that Lotor would take over the throne and, as he'd promised, make new alliances with the mer community to help create a peaceful ocean.

 

It was the best political win the Mers had seen in years. They only hoped that the peace wasn't an empty promise, but Allura was confident. She'd said hello to her father and explained to him what had happened, how'd they'd come just in time, how Lance had sacrificed himself, and Alfor was speechless. Allura assumes that she'd have to have a longer talk with him wen she got home.

 

For now, he had the issue of telling the McClain-Sanchez's that their son, his nephew, was no longer a mer.

 

Lance beamed at Allura, then said softly, "I knew we would." She noticed that he'd been crying. She didn't ask.

 

After changing in the cabin downstairs, Allura sat down on the bench next to Lance, looking out over the ocean ahead of them. Federico yawned, "All set?" Lance nodded, leaning into Allura. His trident was on the ground at his feet.

 

"I can't be your personal guard anymore," Lance murmured, smiling, and Allura nodded sadly.

 

"I don't think I could find anyone better than you, Lance," she said boldly, "But second best will have to do." Lance let out a low chuckle.

 

"I guess so... You'll come visit me, right?" Worry sank into his voice. He didn't try to hide it.

 

It was Allura's turn to laugh, astonished, "Of course I will! And your parents will too, as well as Hunk and all of your other friends. You're still a part of the village, Lance." She paused, then added in a posh voice, "Besides, human-mer relationships are very important in diplomacy." Lance stifled laughter.

 

"I guess that's true," he admitted, tilting his head back to look up at the stars. Was what Lotor said about Keith true? He wouldn't lie about that, Lance was sure. Inamorato. True Love. Soul Mate. Keith was...?

 

Lance smiled to himself. If that really was the case, then he was even more sure that his decision had been a good one. He'd have chosen it even if it weren't for Keith- sometimes being noble meant sacrifice for the greater good anyways.

 

"We'll be home by 6 if I really push it," Federico informed the two friends as the wind picked up around them, water spraying in their wake. Allura and Lance curled up against each other, Lance shivering in Keith's soaking wet shirt and a pair of Federico's shorts. They fell asleep slowly, each wondering what life would be like now.

 

...

 

"Text me your address when you have time and I'll make sure to come visit when possible. And don't worry, I'll help you get on your feet- we don't want you working at McDonalds your whole life, right?"

 

Federico hugged his nephew tightly, rubbing his back before pushing him gently into the cab and closing the door behind him. Lance rolled down the window and the two heard the cab driver grumble something about wet clothes on his seats. Lance and Federico ignored him.

 

"I'll see you soon, Lance. Take care." Lance waved as the cab pulled away, looking out the rear window until his uncle disappeared from sight. Settling against the seat of the cab, Lance gave the cab directions to the Holt beach house, rubbing his bracelet worriedly.

 

He'd said goodbye to Allura at the harbor, and more than a few tears were spilled even though he knew this really wasn't goodbye, he just wasn't going to be seeing her until all this business was sorted out. He'd see her, his parents, Hunk, and probably Alfor in just a few days to talk about the transition. That's what Allura had said anyways.

 

For now, he was just supposed to wait at home, trying to figure out what the fuck he was going to do for the rest of his life. Federico had said high school night classes, college, and then a job, just like everyone else, just a few years older. Allura chimed in that Alfor would put as much money as Lance needed for education in his account, which was kind of a daunting idea, but it made sense.

 

Everything was scary now. Before, it had just been an experiment. He could easily just dive back down to the ocean. But now, the ocean to him was the same as the ocean to a human. No more gills to let him breath underwater, no more tail for him to swim with, no more luminescence. And it was irreversible.

 

Now, he was officially a human. A real-life, air-breathing human capable of drowning and walking the Earth as no one special. It was too overwhelming to think about all at once, so Lance blocked the thoughts from his mind and looked out the window to the scenery outside.

 

He was nervous for no reason to see Keith again. Maybe it was because of what Lotor had said. Maybe it was because Keith was all he had here besides the rest of the household. Keith was his rock, his anchor, and he didn't want Keith to be disappointed in him if he thought that Lance had made the wrong decision.

 

"I'm taking a left here?" The cab driver asked, picking something out of his gums with a toothpick. Lance nodded, realized that the driver couldn't see him, and then confirmed it aloud.

 

They were on the street of the beach house. Lance's hands were shaking, a nervous habit of his, as he gave the driver the cash that Federico had given him. He climbed out of the car shakily, staring up at the giant structure.

 

To his left, the sun was beginning to rise over the horizon, casting the sand dunes in orange and the sky in pink. Lance could just go in- he knew where the spare key was- but he decided that knocking would be better. At least then, someone could see him, talk him down, calm him so that he could make sense of this mess.

 

Lance's fist quaked as he knocked on the door, surprisingly loud in the silent neighborhood. He remembered that there was a doorbell, so he rang that too. Hearing a muffled bump and footsteps behind the door, Lance bit his lip. He had an impulse to run away into the ocean, but that life was over. This was his new life.

 

Keith wasn't the one to open the door. It was Shiro, hair messy, wearing a t-shirt and plaid boxers. He was mid-yawn as he opened the door, but snapped to attention when he recognized Lance, however pathetic he looked, standing there, dripping wet, freckle-less.

 

Lance took one look at Shiro and broke down, stumbling forward to sob into his friend's waiting arms, not paying attention as Shiro slowly brought him inside, rubbing his back and hushing him as Lance cried into his chest.

 

Shiro was honestly bewildered. He had no idea what was going on- why Lance was even here in the first place, let alone why he had legs again, why all his freckles had disappeared into the smooth, monochromatic brown of his skin tone, why the tips of his hair were white. But he recognized that Lance would start talking soon, if not to Shiro, then to Keith.

 

"Keith!" Shiro called over his shoulder, hugging Lance tightly as he full-out bawled. There was the thumping sound of feet up the carpeted basement steps, and then Keith emerged, looking annoyed.

 

"What?" He started to say, agitated, but then he noticed the scenario and he rushed forward, opening his arms as Lance pulled from Shiro and fell into Keith's warm hug, resting his head down on Keith's shoulder and burying his nose in his neck. Keith looked at Shiro questioningly, but Shiro shook his head, looking just as confused.

 

"Hey," Keith said softly, "hey, what's the matter, love? Hm? What's going on?" He led Lance over to the couch and gently sat him down, pulling Lance's legs up onto his lap to cradle him.

 

Lance tried to talk a couple times, but everything was incoherent through his crying. After a few minutes, he settled down and was able to talk normally.

 

"Allura and I went to the war front and- and- and Lotor needed Quintessence and so I gave him all of mine but that means that I'm n-not a mer anym-m-more." Keith inhaled sharply. He realized why Lance's freckles were gone.

 

"A-and my uncle is a human too, we thought he was in Hawaii and I was adopted and my parents are royal 'cause I'm Ally's cousin," Lance choked, starting to cry again. Keith thumbed away his tears, rocking his boyfriend gently.

 

"It's okay, babe, it's all gonna be okay."


	36. Choice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith and Lance sort everything out.

_several months later_

Matt was sitting up on the kitchen counter when Shiro come downstairs, sipping coffee and looking at his phone. Shiro himself made a beeline for the coffee pot and poured himself a mug, glancing over at Matt curiously. The brunette was frowning.

 

"What's on your mind?" Shiro asked, and Matt looked up groggily.

 

"Nothing. Just tired," he said, yawning to prove his point.

 

Shiro nodded, accepting the answer, then walked over to Matt, stepping closer until his hips were against the counter between Matt's knees. "I've been patient," he said in a low voice. Matt stared at him.

 

Shiro, being the tall, persistent guy that he was, was able to reach forward and press his lips softly to the side of Matt's neck, right below his earlobe. Matt sighed sweetly, setting down his coffee and phone and put his hands on Shiro's shoulders, pulling him closer. Shiro pulled his lips from Matt's neck to instead, his chin.

 

Matt made an impatient noise in his throat and Shiro chuckled softly, lifting his face just a little to kiss Matt softly, putting his hands on the hips of Matt's jeans and sliding his waist closer.

 

This time, the kiss was different. Matt had been waiting, but so had Shiro. And now this was happening and it felt right.

 

...

 

Lance held Keith's hand as they strolled through the aquarium, stopping briefly at all the different small tanks with seahorses and bioluminescent fish. Lance had a tourist-y camera around his neck and Keith was wearing his glasses.

 

They were walking to the top of the aquarium, where the big watching tank was and where they could sit down and watch the colorful fish. The first time they'd come to the aquarium, Lance had mixed feelings. Yes, it felt like he was home again. Yes, it was cute how the fish were drawn to him, staring at him with big eyes like they could tell he was a mer- or, at least, used to be.

 

But no, he hated that they were in cages even as Keith explained that they only took in injured animals. No, he almost started crying at the sight of a shark. No, the homesickness was almost too much.

 

But now Lance was used to it, and it was the only escape to the ocean he really had. And of course, Keith always came with him. Keith seemed to be with Lance always, beside him, behind him, in front. It wasn't that Lance minded, he didn't, he just wondered if this was special treatment.

 

The two made their way up the gently sloping ramp that curved around the giant watching tank, climbing to the top where they could relax and Lance could let his eyes go blurry as his head leaned on Keith's shoulder (even though he was taller).

 

Over the weeks, all the color drained out of Lance's hair. He asked Allura, who asked Lotor, and he'd gotten the vague answer that it was because of The Process. Apparently, his brown locks disappeared with his freckles. Lance would sometimes hug his knees to his chest and see if he could see any spots on his legs, any tiny birthmark that would indicate a spark of luminescence.

 

But he could never find any. Lotor had done his job well. Lance felt like crying sometimes. At least he still had that- same old saltwater tears.

 

Allura told Lance that they were crafting a sculpture of him for their village, a life-sized figure of him with his tail curled around his trident. Allura told him that they'd use his real trident, the one with the beautiful pearls. Lance almost wanted to ask her if he could keep it instead. He didn't.

 

Keith tugged Lance over to an empty space on the top floor of the viewing tank and sat down on the rough carpet, leaning back on his palms. Lance sat close enough to Keith that their hips touched, breathing a sigh through his pursed lips.

 

Keith was in school. Lance was too, at night at least. Keith still worked at Starbucks and Lance was still at McDonalds, but he was transferring to a better job with better money and better employers soon, he just didn't know where yet.

 

Shiro was helping him with that. Shiro was also becoming a pilot, and he'd shown Lance his plane once. He and Matt were dating steadily, and Lance hoped they were happy. It sure seemed that way.

 

The full transition to te human world had been harder than Lance wished to admit. There were many nights that he couldn't sleep, holding his shaking hands to his chest to try and stop their tremors. Federico helped, though. And Keith too, of course. And all of his other friends.

 

His family came up when they could, and he and his father were able to make proper amends. And after, Federico and Carlos were reunited, crying and laughing and hugging so hard that Lance couldn't help but take pictures. He had one framed in his room, still in the attic.

 

Lance missed his brother and sister, his mom and dad, Hunk and Allura more than ever now since they'd migrated to warmer water for the winter and Lance wouldn't be seeing them again until spring, but he'd talked to Keith and they were planning on visiting Keith's parents in a few weeks, just in time for Christmas.

 

Lance had never seen snow before. Keith promised to teach him how to snowboard so he could enjoy it properly. Lance didn't like the cold weather particularly, but he grew to love the snow days and hot chocolate and blanket forts that the Holt house built when it got cold, and the summer sun would smile through the clouds at Lance whenever he felt sad.

 

Lance stared at the fish in the tank thoughtlessly, letting his breathing slow down and his eyes drift. Keith almost never spoke at the aquarium- Lance figured that he wanted Lance to have this silence to himself, but today was different.

 

"Do you regret it?" Keith asked, not particularly loudly or softly, just aloud, waiting for Lance.

 

The question hung in the air as Lance felt a rush of emotions push through his heart. He turned to Keith.

 

"I loved the ocean, Keith. I still do. I always will. It's my home, my family, my friends, and everything I know. The ocean is a part of me."

 

He paused. "But you're a part of me too. And I chose you over the ocean. I chose you over my life there. I chose you over everything I knew. And maybe that's stupid. Maybe that's dumb. But I won't regret it. This is the life I chose, Keith.

 

"I chose you."


	37. final a/n

Hey guys, it's cal.

Wow. It's done. It's over. It's finished. That's... a lot. I have worked on this fic since (I believe) February 15th. That's nearly 6 months. Half a year. It's amazing what's happened in this half-year. All the friends I've made through this fic, all the comments that have made me laugh, smile, reach out to. Every kudos counts in my heart. You guys truly don't know how much you mean to me.

 

When I began this, I had no idea where it was going. I had almost no plot planned, and the stuff I did have planned was changed a lot. And you know what else changed a lot? First off, my confidence. I published a Get to Know Me book with a face-reveal. I published a Tips book for writers who came to me for advice. I made friends and started conversations. This fic has given me so many opportunities, and I hope I've grown from it.

First, I'd like to give you guys a few scenes that I wrote that never made it to the final chapters. Kinda like deleted scenes. I wrote them early on to help with writers block and some of them never made it out of the notes section. I'm pretty sure I wrote the first kiss scene when I was having trouble with the third chapter haha. So here you are, deleted scenes:

 

1) "Thace, Ulaz, thank Alfor you're here. Where's mom and dad though?"

 

Thace looked over Lance. Of course he immediately noticed Keith in his arms, the bubble of air over his head.

 

"Lance. Long time no see. They're out with the twins for a recital. We were just dropping off some supplies. Who's this? Does Alfor know he's here?"

 

Lance smiled sheepishly. "That's the thing. I need to go see him. But I can't bring Keith with me. Can you guys take care of him? I promise, it'll be 10 minutes tops."

 

"Of course, Lance. Take as long as you need," Ulaz said, picking Keith from Lance's arms. The husbands' tails were shark-like, the result of generations of hybrids in their own community. They could easily beat Lance with their intense speed, and were incredible fighters. Lance had always wanted to go visit their community, but his mother had said that it was dangerous there because of so many hybrids. Lance's tail, pure mer, would be envied and ridiculed at the same time.

 

"Thank you thank you thank you! I'll pay you back asap!"

 

"No problem, Lance. See you!"

 

Lance glanced over his shoulder as he swam away, smiling to himself as he saw Keith cradled in Ulaz's giant biceps. Keith was safe from Alfor's laws, Lance however was about to face them head on.

 

2) Keith tried not to cry as he leaned over Lance's body, cradling his head in his lap. Lance smiled dizzily at Keith, but he couldn't keep his eyes from closing.

 

"Lance! Lance, no, come on, stay with me!" Keith cried out as the waves of the ocean pushed and pulled at him in the shallow water. Keith gathered Lance to his chest, frantically pushing the brunette's hair off his bloodied forehead.

 

"You stay with me!" Keith choked, shaking Lance carefully, "You stay with me until Allura gets back, you hear? You hear me, Lance?"

 

Lance didn't move. His breath was barely there. Keith kept his hand at Lance's neck, to his pulse, and rocked over him, tears landing on Lance's perfect skin.

 

"Oh, Anna Sun~" he whispered, quoting from their favorite song, "We're gonna rattle this ghost town."

 

Lance's pulse dropped away.

 

Oh, Anna Sun.

 

3) Allura was upright, pacing, clutching something delicately in her hands. She looked nervous. Stressed out.

 

Turning, she noticed Lance in the doorway, and swam forward, greeting him with a flash of the markings on her cheeks. He replied with the same gesture, then followed her to the sitting room, which had several rock stools and stone tablets with writing etched into them. Tables were old-fashioned, everyone had pretty much converted to laminated paper, but they were historical and nostalgic.

 

Inviting Lance to sit, Allura sighed heavily. She didn't sit down next to him. "Lance, there's a few things I need to tell you about."

 

Lance's mind immediately jumped to Keith, but he shoved the thought down just as quickly. He couldn't make conclusions like that so fast.

 

"First of all, I need to tell you about yourself."

4) (/this was an alternate ending of Lance's response that I wrote a few chapters ago, but I rewrote it with the same general gist/)

 

"I chose you, Keith," Lance said fiercely, "I chose you over the ocean, over my tail, over my legacy. I don't doubt soulmates. I don't doubt how I feel about you. Yeah, that probably makes me stupid, but I chose you over everything else because I believe in us."

 

..

 

I also had a big folder on instagram that had all of the fanart that I used in chapters in, but i just went through it and resaved any fanart I didn't use in the fic for the next klance fic. I already have so many ideas.

 

And that brings me to my next subject. My new fic.

 

Drumrolllllllllllll

 

Its called “Halo ‘n Horns”. Devil Keith. Angel Lance. You like?

 

I'm going in blind. No real plot. No real planning. It's gonna be epic.

 

It'll be in production for a while as I tweak and work on the first chapter, making sure it's going in the general direction I want it to. I really hope you guys like it.

 

Anyways.

 

Now's the time for questions.

 

What in SWM? (Or beat drop) did you like that you want to see in Halo 'n Horns? What did you not like that you don't want to see in HnH?

 

Did I end Swm right? I don't wanna disappoint you guys,,

 

Is there anything else you want to know? I'll answer you in the comments.

 

Special thanks to Ayjan, Abi, Julieta, Kimberly, Molly, Jordyn, Mercy, Dean, Haley, and everyone else who's stuck with me and stayed by my side.

 

And to all my readers in general- I hope you've enjoyed this. You're the reason I write. You make my heart happy.

 

I love you <3

 

Over and out.

**Author's Note:**

> I know that a lot of people rly hate a/ns and they can be really boring and long so I'll try to keep this short lol
> 
> heeeeeey! im cal, and thanks for clickin on my fic... after the positive feedback from my last klance fic (Beat Drop) i decided to give it a go with another klance fic (bc who am i kidding, klance is canon king). as you know already, it's a mer!lance fic and we're gonna have some snazzy klance shit along with the whole rest of the vld family (including lotor and coran i think)!!
> 
> i just wanted to let you know that, while i try to update at least every other week, things are gonna be a little slow for the first few chapters since im still getting on my feet with the plot and getting the hang of character developement and stuff. also, i'm a student so i might be busy during the week, so you can probably count on my updates on fridays, saturdays, or sundays, but sometimes i might just randomly update on a wednesday or smth... idk, we'll work it out somehow lolol
> 
> i try to reply to comments as much as possible, so feel free to like,,, idk ask questions and stuff? ill try to answer them :) 
> 
> again, thank you for reading, i hope you enjoy this story :)


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